The majority of tax season has officially passed, but scammers are still active in their attempts to trick you into disclosing personal information. The scammers are waiting for you since you’re seeking for your refund or notice of assessment!
If you’ve received a letter claiming to be from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) and requesting for personal information like a social insurance number (SIN), credit card number, bank account number, or passport number, you must use precaution as a taxpayer.
Scammers may send you an email asking you to confirm personal information, banking information, etc. that appears to be genuine, but this is really just a technique for them to gain the data they need to steal from your bank accounts, credit cards, identity, and more.
The organization in charge of enforcing Canada’s tax laws occasionally does contact people to discuss their cases. The contact will often be made with the intention of reviewing an income tax and benefit return, including any relevant GST, HST, T4, or T5 data. A phone call like that will often be a normal check. The CRA occasionally calls sole proprietors or small business owners to offer free tax assistance through its Liaison Officer service.
In order to safeguard yourself from these frauds, there are a few important points to keep in mind when speaking with the CRA.
The CRA will not
- send you an email, request access to your personal or financial information, and direct you to a website.
- emailing you a link that requests that you complete an online form with sensitive information.
- offer you a link to your reimbursement in an email.
- threaten to have you arrested or imprisoned
- logon to your CRA online account unless it’s part of a multi-factor authentication process.
If a representative from the CRA calls you, they must identify themselves by name and agent ID. After then, discontinue the call and check with the CRA to see if the data they provided was accurate.
In the provinces, call 1-800-959-8281, and in the territories, dial 1-866-426-1527 to get in touch with the CRA. Businesses can contact the CRA at 1-866-841-1876 in the territories or 1-800-959-5525 in the provinces.
You may contact the caller back to discuss the reason for their call once you’ve confirmed that the person was a CRA employee.
You will never receive an email from the CRA with a link to submit a refund request
CRA Never ask for your Social Insurance Number (SIN) or your banking information if the CRA calls you to verify your personal information.
Strange however it may seem, some scammers continue to use the postal service. Never believe a letter you receive in the mail requesting personal information from you. To ensure that the request is valid, contact the CRA.
Report a suspected scam
Call the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501 to report the suspected fraud if you believe you may have been a victim of a scam or that you may have given personal information to a scammer. Additionally, you should get in touch with the appropriate credit reporting agencies, your banking institution, and the local police department.
Do yourself a favour and let a local ledgers professional handle any inquiries you receive from the CRA. We’re here to support you and guard you against fraud.
If you have any questions regarding CRA, feel free to contact finnection via email at info@finnection.ca or call us at (647) 795-5462
Disclaimer: Above information is subject to change and represent the views of the author. It is shared for educational purposes only. Readers are advised to use their own judgement and seek specific professional advice before making any decision. Finnection Inc. is not liable for any actions taken by reader based on the information shared in this article. You may consult with us before using this information for any purpose.