RCMP warns their phone number has been spoofed, used in scams
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Windsor detachment is warning residents of a spoofed phone number that has been used to illegally intimidate and defraud victims.
The RCMP phone number 519-948-5287 has been spoofed, which means a scammer used a device to mask their real phone number and display a different number that doesn’t belong to the caller.
The RCMP is reminding residents that police will:
- Never ask you to make payments using bitcoin or gift cards
- Not show up to your home to collect money for a child in jail
- Not ask for your personal information such as your Social Insurance Number (SIN), your date of birth (DOB) or phone number
If you suspect you are being scammed, police say to hang up, wait 10 minutes and call your local police service.
Scammers have the technology to keep a spoofed number for 10 minutes, that’s why police recommend waiting the 10 minutes before calling police.
The RCMP in Ontario is not the police of jurisdiction. In Ontario, the RCMP federal laws, including national security, border integrity, transnational, serious and organized crime and financial crimes such as cyber crime, money laundering and counterfeiting.
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