SURREY RCMP are warning residents after having received 50 reports of fraud involving cryptocurrency with losses of over $3,200,000 in January and February.

In 2023, they received 229 reports of fraud involving cryptocurrency with total losses of over $12,000,000 to Surrey residents.

The majority of the frauds were related to investment scams. In these scams, victims were introduced to cryptocurrency-related investments via social media, phone calls, online advertisements, and online dating platforms.

Using spoofed websites and mobile applications with fake trades and profits, the victims are encouraged to invest money on the investing platform. When the victim attempts to withdraw their investments, they are typically asked for more money for taxes and other fees.

Eventually the scammer stops communicating with the victim and the victim realizes they have been defrauded of all the money they believed they were investing, said Cpl. Sarbjit K. Sangha, Media Relations Officer, Surrey RCMP.

THE BC Securities Commission offers resources to help protect against investment fraud on their website: investright.org. The website provides insights and resources to educate and protect investors in BC, including the Investment Caution List – https://www.investright.org/tools-resources/enforcement/investment-caution-list/, a searchable list of unregistered and unqualified Investments being offered in BC.

Websites, email addresses and phone numbers are often spoofed. Exercise caution and always take a close look at spelling and for variations of the legitimate business names and websites.

If you have provided personal information, such as your Driver License, Passport, or SIN number; contact Equifax and TransUnion, the two main credit bureaus in Canada to prevent potential fraud. It is important to monitor your credit report for signs of identity theft and check for any unauthorized credit checks or applications.

For a list of current scams, or to report fraud online, visit the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.