Niagara Regional Police warn public about online scam

Niagara Regional Police are warning the public about computer tech support scams, after receiving a number of similar complaints.

Police say victims get emails or pop-up screens, telling them their computer has a virus or other issues. That leads some people to clink into a tech support website that puts them in contact with scammers.

Once there is contact, police say the scammers remotely access the computers and offer to remove viruses or install software for a fee.

People are asked to provide credit card and banking information, passwords and other personal data.

Victims later find out they were charged significantly more than initially told.

This is often combined with the “overpayment scam,” where police say the victim is lead to believe they’ve had money accidentally deposited into their account, when that is not the case. They then reimburse the scammer.

Police say people should be cautious about sharing personal or financial information online and to ensure the companies they deal with are legitimate.