A notice on the Bank of Canada’s website regarding potential fraud use with its old phone number has garnered some backlash from Canadians who feel this is an error that could have been easily avoided.
The notice on the website’s home page warns Canadians that if they have called the central bank’s now discontinued phone number since February of this year, they may have been subject to a scam.
“If you still hold Canada Savings Bonds, please be advised that the telephone contact number 1-877-899-3599 has been discontinued. If you called that number since February 2024, you may have been exposed to a scam. If so, contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1‑888‑495‑8501,” reads the notice.
Telephone and online fraud scams have skyrocketed in Canada in recent years with online scammers making off with $554 million in the last five years.
Data provided by the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre show there has been a 46% spike in fraud claims since 2021.
One X user pointed out how for all the money the government is able to spend, it can’t “find $20/year to keep a Bank of Canada phone number active & prevent scammers from taking possession.”
“Ladies & gentleman, the notice on the front page of the 10th largest central bank in the world!” the post continued.
It’s not just people at home who are being scammed either: modern fraudsters have become sophisticated enough to get millions of dollars out of government agencies as well. Online scammers took the government for $10 million last year alone.
Phone scammers are doing quite well too, as the Canada Revenue Agency alone has now paid out $37 million in taxpayer money to alleged telecom scammers, according to an affidavit unsealed in April.
Such an uptick in fraud scams has left some Canadians frustrated with the Bank of Canada’s negligence when choosing to discontinue its previous phone number without making the necessary precautions to ensure it didn’t wind up in the hands of criminals.
The Bank of Canada said it was proactive about warning Canadians of the fraud risk when it learned of the issue.
“The number was discontinued when the Government of Canada wound down its retail debt program and responsibility for Canada Savings Bonds was transferred to the Bank of Canada,” a spokesperson for the Bank of Canada told True North.
“As soon as we became aware that the old number was being used for potentially fraudulent purposes, we acted proactively to advise Canadians of the risk.”
The notice directs concerned consumers to contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.
True North reached out to the agency to see if there had been an influx of calls as a result of the number being available to potential scammers.
“After searching our database, I can confirm that we haven’t received reports related to the phone number you provided,” responded a Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre spokesperson.
