Wellington County OPP are once again warning the public to be vigilant following a gift card scam in Minto.
Police responded to a reported theft at 3:30 p.m. on November 28 after a Clifford resident claimed they got a call from an unknown male posing as a bank representative.
The unknown caller got the victim to purchase $500 in gift cards and the victim gave the caller the redemption codes for the cards.
The victim nearly purchased another $3,500 worth of gift cards but was luckily warned by a store employee that a possible scam had occurred. Police were contacted soon after.
Police are urging everyone that when an unsolicited call comes in, do not give out any personal information or agree to purchase anything, and immediately hang up and block the caller.
Warning signs of a potential scam include unsolicited emails, texts or calls at strange times, an unknown caller or sender creating a false sense of urgency, spelling errors and missing punctuation and automated messages, random links or attachments, and generic business or company names.
The OPP also note that no bank or business will contact you and ask you to purchase gift cards.
For more information on scams and frauds, the public is encouraged to read The Little Black Book of Scams, which can be found online: https://www.competitionbureau.gc.ca/eic/site/cb-bc.nsf/eng/03074.html
If you are the recipient of a fraudulent call, text, or email, or if you have been a victim of a fraud, you are encouraged to report the incident to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre by calling 1-888-495-8501 or visit http://www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca.
