Fraudsters are no longer limited to telephone or internet scams, they even dare to go into the homes of elderly people to steal their savings. The number of victims of fraud involving fake bank representatives continues to increase, and to combat this scourge, the Séreté du Québec is working more than ever with other police forces to arrest these fraudsters.
Germain Bédard is a tall, 82-year-old man who lives in the Manoir des Îles in Laval. A devoted husband and a very active man, he had no idea that a simple phone call would poison his life.
The trick
His report is precise, he remembers every word of the stratagem. That morning, Mr. Bédard was waiting for a call from the garage where he had previously left his vehicle. On the other end of the line is a woman who introduces herself as Desjardins' employee and asks him to check whether he has his bank cards with him. She very convincingly explains to him that fraudulent transactions have been made in his bank account.
She says: You should do this as soon as possible otherwise your account may be drained. I was nervous then, she tried to annoy me and she succeeded.
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Germain Bédard blames himself for passing on his bank details.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Martin Brunette
To stop the bleeding from his accounts, she convinces him to put the cards from all his banks and his personal identification number, his PIN, in an envelope. Mr. Bédard is cautious and refuses to reveal his PIN, but that's what the fraudsters planned. The pseudo-employee told her to check her display. I checked it, it was clearly labeled “Caisse Desjardins.” “I gave the PIN,” he admits regretfully.
We then explain to him that a representative from the fund will come to pick up the envelope in a few minutes, but when the man shows up at the door, the meeting doesn't go as planned. He is abrupt, asks her for the envelope in a curt tone and leaves immediately. I said to my wife: It's not working. He's not polite there; The Caisse people are usually more polite.
Mr. Bédard immediately informed his apartment's administrative assistant, Eve Gagnon, who recognized the plan since three other of his residents were victims. She quickly alerted the police and Germain Bédard's financial institutions, but the fraudsters still had time to make withdrawals and purchases worth $6,300.
Normally I'm careful. Then to make a deal out of it and then get involved like that, I wasn't happy with myself.
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Germain Bédard, 82 years old, in conversation with journalist Katherine Tremblay.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Sébastien Gauvin Blanchet
Why do victims fall for this?
Over time, scammers have refined their strategy. They did trial and error and learned from it. Your speech is now more credible and convincing. The goal is to make the victim feel like they are taken care of and that we have the solution to stop fraudulent transactions.
Criminals also rely on the sense of urgency: we want to get victims to act quickly and without thinking, explains Lieutenant Jean-François Lévesque-Delaunais of the criminal investigation department. Economic crime in the Séreté du Québec. We do not want to give the victim time to consult a family member or loved one.
Thanks to technology, fraudsters can also be more and more convincing. Fraudsters use applications that allow them to change the information displayed on the phone screen. The victim sees the name of the financial institution and actually believes that they are being contacted by it. At that moment, the victim had every reason to believe that what was happening was real, the lieutenant regrets.
And it is the private telephone line that is regularly used by fraudsters to contact vulnerable customers, i.e. older people.
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Jean-François Lévesque-Delaunais, Economic Crime Investigations Unit, Séreté du Québec.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Martin Brunette
Shocked victims
Loss of trust in the people around you, sadness, shame, insomnia – according to Lieutenant Lévesque-Delaunais, we cannot underestimate the psychological and physical impact of cheating.
There is also the added stress of financial losses.
Eve Gagnon witnessed the consequences for her residents. There is a lady who was completely destroyed […], another gentleman who was no longer sleeping. It really affects her morale, she complains.
Victims are not responsible for the actions of scammers. So you don't have to be ashamed. We must dare to denounce.
Fraudsters are striking everywhere
According to the SQ, this strategy emerged in Quebec in the summer of 2020 and cases have been steadily increasing since then. Victims of false information fraud are on average 77 years old.
There is currently no region that has been spared. Events of this kind occurred in all regions of Quebec.
Data from the Canadian Anti-Fraud Center suggests the number of victims of fake bank representative scams in the country has more than tripled in four years and that financial losses have increased from $3.3 million to more than $10 million.
And that's just the tip of the iceberg, as the Anti-Fraud Center estimates that only 5 to 10% of fraud cases are reported to it.
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A man writes his personal bank details on a piece of paper.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Martin Brunette
The Séreté du Québec is taking the situation very seriously
Given this increase in cases, the SQ assigned a group of investigators specifically to investigate the false representation scam.
In addition, cooperation with other police forces was strengthened to increase efficiency. This approach has made it possible to solve numerous cases, including several involving false representatives, explains Lieutenant Lévesque-Delaunais.
Previously, when a fraudster committed crimes across the province, he would be prosecuted in silos in different jurisdictions. From now on, the police organizations involved will work together with the head of the criminal and law enforcement agency from the start to bring together all files in the same district. As a result, we receive significant penalties for serious crimes, says the SQ lieutenant.
Are we responsible for the amounts defrauded?
For five months, Germain Bédard suffered from insomnia because CIBC refused to reimburse him for the $4,769 defrauded from his credit card. However, Desjardins refunded the amount without hesitation. It was thanks to the commitment of Ms Gagnon, who alerted the Banking and Investment Ombudsman and the media, that Mr Bédard received a refund.
Alexandre Plourde, lawyer and analyst at Option Consommateurs, has been complaining for years about the lack of clarity surrounding bank fraud reimbursement.
Yes, banking contracts prevent us from sharing our PIN with third parties, but if we become victims of deception, if we are deceived by a fraudster, that is different.
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Alexandre Plourde, lawyer and analyst, options expert.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Martin Brunette
In the case of credit card fraud, the law protects the consumer and limits his liability to $50 unless he has committed gross negligence. For Me Plourde, being deceived by a fraudster who has set a trap for us is not a serious mistake.
I do not believe that a consumer should be held responsible for reimbursing amounts misappropriated in these circumstances.
But each case is unique and since it is strictly forbidden to provide one's PIN to third parties, a bank or court could conclude that the consumer is responsible for his losses and that he has committed a crime. big mistake.
There is no law for debit cards, but there is the Canadian Code of Conduct for Debit Card Services, which states: The cardholder will not be deemed to have voluntarily disclosed the PIN if the PIN was obtained through coercion, deception, violence or intimidation. Even though member banks of the Canadian Bankers Association have adhered to the code, the problem, according to Me Plourde, is that the code is voluntary.
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Ève Gagnon, administrative assistant, Manoir des Îles in Laval.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Martin Brunette
According to the latter, this legal vacuum leads banks to refuse to reimburse consumers in certain circumstances and inform them that they have acted negligently.
We should have mandatory laws for banks instead of relying on voluntary codes to ensure consumer protection.
An ombudsman to defend consumer interests
Asked about the lack of oversight, Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland reminds that if you feel you have been treated unfairly by your bank, you can contact the Banking Services and Investment Ombudsman, OBSI, an independent and transparent organization who defends the interests of consumers, and not a representative who advocates for the interests of banks.
Councilors of the Sèreté du Québec
Please note that a financial institution will never ask you for your PIN or send an employee to your home to collect your bank cards.
Report the fraud to your police as soon as possible. There is no such thing as a small file and any information or description can be helpful in making an arrest.
Notify your financial institutions quickly.
If you suspect the person in front of you is a fraudster, hand over your cards and then contact the police.
If someone claims you are the victim of a scam, tell them you will do your own checks and hang up. Never call back the number the person left you. Instead, look for your bank's official number.
