The spelling of the company was off by one letter

THE Abbotsford Police Department on Tuesday warned the public of an email scam targeting businesses.

Investigators with the General Investigation Section and Major Crime Unit are investigating two incidents where fraudsters emailed two larger companies and requested, they pay their invoices by way of an e-transfers.

The fraudsters used an email address very similar to a legitimate company, but the spelling of the company was off by one letter, easily missed during daily transactions. The clients e-transferred the funds to the fraudster’s account. The business did not receive the money and the clients were out the funds that had been e-transferred.

Though this is not a new fraud, other jurisdictions across Canada have had similar frauds involving larger businesses.

What to do if you encounter a fraud:

• Be vigilant and don’t provide any money, or financial or personal information until you have verified the legitimacy of the person or the company they claim to represent. To check the legitimacy, contact the company directly.
• Check the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre for information on current scams.
• Call your local police agency if you’ve lost money or your identity has been compromised because of a fraud.

You can report a scam where you haven’t been a victim to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501 or online at www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca.