Hi-tech scammers are like racoons, they are everywhere!

BY MICHAEL THOMAS

There was a time not so long ago when a con-artist, scammer, thief, or shyster used to be few and far between, and the chances of these ungodly characters coming into contact with your personal information or banking information was a long-shot. Not now!

Imagine being called on your cell phone by a so-called government agent and told that you owe Revenue Canada a sizable amount of money. If you don’t make arrangements to pay up asap there will be a warrant issued for your arrest. This is stage one.

Some folks who receive such a call are generally frightened out of their wits and immediately try striking a bargain with the so-called agent as to where and when this debt can be settled. stage two, and a big mistake.

Such a person usually gets directions on how to pay up quickly without any idea as to whom they are paying. As quickly as they hand over the money, the call and any trace of the caller disappears into thin air leaving them and most times the law as well with no answers.

This new wave of thieves not only targets individuals, but businesses too ripping off customers information for the purpose of identity theft. Statistics Canada found in a report from March 2019 that 21% of Canadian businesses said there were impacted by cybersecurity incidents which affected their operations.

Meanwhile, more than half 54% of impacted businesses in Canada reported that cybersecurity incidents stopped employees from carrying out day-to-day work, while close to one-third (30%) experienced additional repair or recovery costs.

About 10% of businesses in Canada said that they lost revenue as a result of cybersecurity incidents, and fewer than 6% of businesses reported that the incidents damaged the reputation of their business.

In the case of these businesses the cost of detecting and preventing this type of crime is very costly. The report shows, on average, Canadian businesses spent $78,000 on implementing such measures.

Large businesses spent ($922,000) while medium-sized businesses spent ($108,000) and small businesses reported spending an average of $44,000. These companies also hired consultants and contractors to help with this problem. About 45% of medium-sized businesses used the services of consultants and contractors, while 38% of large businesses, 33% of small businesses and 58% of the businesses all undertook activities to identify cybersecurity risks.

It seems like the scammers just keep coming up with new ideas every time, another venue where they are prevalent is credit card fraud. A few years ago an Ipsos poll showed that almost half of the country 48% are worried when it comes to shopping online. It would be very interesting to see what a recent poll may reveal.

The troubling fact in all this is that as recent as 2018, an Ipsos poll revealed that although 77% of Canadians claim to be knowledgeable about cyber threats when put to the test that knowledge appears to be lacking.

This study also found that while the younger generation of Canadians is more tech-savvy than their parents and grandparents, when put to the test it did not appear so. What is worrying, is that they are more willing to take risks online than older folks.

47% of Canadians said that they wouldn’t know what to do if they were the victim of a cybercrime. This figure rises to 55% of millennials and is worse among Gen Xers 48%. Baby Boomers sit at about 40%.

One should always dig deeper, when it comes to people who are looking to collect your information. Sometimes there is more to it. Question everything!