Money scams persist in Williams Lake, said safer community co-ordinator Dave Dickson.
“It’s not going away and if anything it’s going up and we’re hearing more and more about it,” Dickson told the Weekend Advisor Thursday.
Big amounts of money — as much as $3,000, $10,000 and even $15,000 — have been sent away from residents in the community to predators.
Callers are becoming more and more crafty, Dickson explained.
“A caller will say, ‘hi grandma, it’s me, your grandson,’ and the call recipient will say, ‘oh hi Brian,’ giving the caller the name he was looking for.”
Dickson encouraged citizens to connect with neighbours to warn them. Even if somebody sounds pleasant and convincing, if they are asking for money, it’s probably a scam. While the elderly are more susceptible, younger people are falling victim as well.
There are media warnings about money scams all the time, yet the message is not getting through to everyone, Dickson said.
“I’m also talking with the banks to see what the RCMP can do to help increase awareness.”
There’s also a new scam where people will get a call on an iPhone. The phone will ring once. When the phone owner calls back, the scammer is able to use the phone owner’s phone plan to rack up charges.