BBB: Email extortion continues to harass Canadians

Receiving a threatening email can be alarming, infuriating and frightening. The Better Business Bureau of Mainland BC (BBB) ​​warns that scammers are trying to take advantage of your fear to extort you.

The BBB has received reports of these types of scams in Canada as far back as August 2019.

A recent example of this ‘sextortion’ scam was shared by the Canadian Anti-Fraud Center with warnings to Canadians who may experience this type of fraud, which attempts to scare and shame victims into sending money to the scammer to send.

These types of extortion emails sometimes contain a cryptocurrency QR code that they must scan to make the payment.

“We know these are very disturbing emails to receive,” said BBB spokesperson Neesha Hothi.

“These scammers make threats claiming they have evidence of explicit website visits that they will send to friends and family if they are not paid off with cryptocurrency. The letter may contain your name, phone number, address and even photos of your home to mislead you. But it is important not to get scared and act impulsively. Spot the signs of fraud, protect yourself with tips from the BBB, and report these threats whenever possible.

The BBB suggests the following tips to help you identify and protect yourself from these extortion emails:

Red flags

• The scammer does not provide any details about which site you supposedly visited
• The scammer provides no evidence to prove that he has the information he claims
• The scammer demands an urgent ransom to be paid in gift cards, bitcoin or via bank transfer
• Posts contain grammatical errors, spelling mistakes and a time frame that must be met

Protect yourself

• Don’t send money under pressure
• Delete threatening messages
• Search the Internet or BBB Scam Tracker for one or two sentences from the email to confirm
• Don’t open attachments, click links, or scan QR codes in emails from people you don’t know. Doing so can leave you vulnerable to identity theft and malware
• Run a security check on your computer and install security software
• Enable two-factor authentication for your accounts
• Set your social media pages to the highest level of privacy and limit the sharing of personal information online
• Change your passwords often
• Cover your webcam when not in use
• Check if your email address has been compromised by a security breach and change your passwords if necessary

If you receive threatening messages, report them to your local police immediately.