Scammers are continually working on new and inventive ways to steal your financial information, according to the Chief Risk Officer of Moneris Solutions.
He says one of the most common ways scammers try to steal your information is the “email phishing scam” where a fake email is sent requesting personal or financial information.
“They’ll try to look like something that the consumer may open, whether it’s a financial institution or another trusted party that they would deal with,” says Prentice.
He adds it’s extremely rare for businesses like that to send consumers an email requesting personal information, he says any email like that should send up a huge red flag for consumers.
Brian Prentice says there are common sense measures consumers can take to ensure the safety of their information, but one of the best ways to reduce fraud is to have retailers use the latest technology.
Prentice says most businesses in Canada now use chip card technology which is a secure way to pay.
“It’s much more difficult for somebody to use a card, and counterfeit a card with that technology,” says Prentice. “It is a more secure way to pay, and it is helping to drive fraud away from counterfeiting cards.”
Prentice says because of the wide spread use of chip card technology, there’s very little fraud at the point of sale.