February may be the month for cupids and chocolate, but don’t be sweet talked by a con artist trying to steal your personal and financial information. There are plenty of scams out there and a hard heart and cool thinking will go a long way towards protecting you from being victimized.

Watch out

In most cases, common sense, a little bit of knowledge and a healthy dose of scepticism will ensure that you recognize most scams for what they are. As a refresher, here are few of the common scams out there to watch for.

• Advanced Fee Scams - This type of scam has been around for a while. Typically you will receive a letter, e-mail, or fax requesting help with an "urgent business transaction", usually involving the transfer of millions of dollars out of a foreign country through your bank account. The sender promises that as a reward for your help, you’ll receive an "advanced fee." Once they have your account and other personal information, however, they can use this to commit financial fraud. If you received such an e-mail or letter, delete it or destroy it.
• Overpayment Scam - Typically, victims of this type of scam are selling something or possibly renting property. Criminals will comb the newspaper classified ads or Internet looking for victims. They will contact you, agree to buy what you are selling or rent the property. They will then send a cheque or money order for an amount that is higher than the agreed-upon price and ask that you send the difference to them. The victim will then find that the cheque or money order is fraudulent and they are not only out that amount, but also the amount sent back to the criminal. Never accept payment for anything for more than the agreed-upon price and ensure that the cheque or money order has cleared before shipping any goods.
• Phishing - E-mail fraud, sometimes known as "phishing" because criminals use fraudulent e-mail messages and websites that look like they are from a legitimate organization, such as a bank, credit card provider, retailer or government agency to "phish" for victims, is a scam used to trick you into revealing personal information. Don’t be fooled. A bank would never ask its customers for personal information like account numbers, passwords or PINs through an e-mail. If you receive such an e-mail, don’t respond to it. Instead, report it to the company being impersonated. Most banks have information about phishing on their websites, and you can link to them through the e-mail fraud section on the CBA’s website.
• Vishing - With a vishing threat, the phone or e-mail message might warn of a security alert and ask you to call a local or toll-free number where an automated attendant will ask you to disclose or punch in personal information, such as your Social Insurance Number, or account or credit or debit card number along with your banking password or card personal identification number (PIN). After that you will likely be disconnected: you won’t speak to anyone but the criminals will have your information.
  
  It is important to know that in some cases, your bank may contact you by phone or leave you a voicemail message, for example if they suspect fraudulent activity on your debit or credit card or bank account. As part of a legitimate conversation with your financial institution, you may be asked personal verification questions so the bank can ensure that they are speaking to the right person. You will not, however, be asked to verbally provide your Social Insurance Number or any card PIN or banking password or enter them on your telephone keypad.
• Telemarketing Fraud - In addition to e-mails and websites, criminals may use the phone to lure you into providing your personal information or to get you to pay a fee in order to win a prize or obtain a credit card. If you have any doubts about the validity of any promotions or information requests you receive over the phone, you may wish to call the organization to verify the legitimacy of the request. Be sure to use a phone number that you know is correct. According to Phonebusters, a national anti-fraud call centre jointly operated by the Ontario Provincial Police and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, winners of a legitimate contest should never have to pay a fee to qualify for a prize and you will never have to pay an up-front fee before getting a credit card. Remember: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

For more tips, or to download the CBA’s free booklet, Safeguarding Your Money, visit the Fraud and Security section of the Canadian Bankers Association website. Booklets are also available by mail by calling 1-800-263-0231.

Canada’s banks take the issue of privacy, security and fraud prevention very seriously. They work hard to prevent their operations and customers from being used for any kind of financial crime and to raise awareness about the ways that customers can protect themselves.

As a consumer, you also have an important role to play in preventing fraud. This month we’ll be taking a look at scams that attempt to talk you into revealing personal and financial information to a thief.