Protecting Yourself from Lending Fraud

March, 2020

Approved! Act Now! Congratulations!

Those are all common statements used by scam artists and fraudsters who are phishing for your personal information, whether it’s your Social Insurance Number, banking information, or anything else tied to you financially. It’s becoming an issue for both customers and legitimate lending companies in many ways, with both parties suffering the consequences; for you the customer, your personal and financial well-being is a stake, and for the company, their reputation could take a hit.

There are many steps you can take to check and make sure that the offer you are receiving are legitimate, most of which are simple. Before you give anyone your personal information, be sure to follow the following steps:

Be skeptical
Be careful
Reach out

Allow us to break down each step individually:

Be Skeptical

If an offer seems too good to be true, it likely is. Speedy Cash Canada, and other payday lending companies, will not call, text, or email you out of the blue stating that you’ve been approved for a certain amount of money without you applying for some. At Speedy Cash Canada, if you haven’t inquired with us about obtaining a loan, we will not contact you mentioning pre–approval.

Take caution with the amount of money you are “approved” for as well; in Canada, federal legislation only allows payday loans of up to $1,500 at a time. If you’re receiving an offer for a payday loan of more than that amount, it is very likely a scam and you should delete the message at once.

Furthermore, licensed lenders do not require any kind of prepayment to secure a loan. Again, lenders such as Speedy Cash Canada are bound by government regulations when it comes to how much they can charge to provide you with a loan.

Be Careful

If you happen to receive an email, text message, or phone call, take a close look at who it’s from and where it came from.

Typically, licensed payday lenders will not use free email accounts such as Hotmail, Gmail, or Yahoo. If you receive an offer from an individual using something other than a company email, do not proceed to click on any links or respond. Ignoring the offer is your best option!

If you’re receiving offers via telephone or text, have a look at the phone number. Does it have a Canadian area code? If you search the number on the Internet, does it correlate to a licensed lender? Thanks to modern technology, many phone numbers that are associated with scams and fraud are flagged and an internet search can clarify things almost right away.

Another important thing to keep in mind is who you’re giving your personal information to. Do your research on licensed lenders, like Speedy Cash Canada by visiting our website at www.speedycash.ca, before applying for a payday loan. When you are applying, be sure to check out the address bar for the little “Lock” symbol:

This symbol lets you know that the connection to the website you’re visiting is secure and your personal information is highly unlikely to be at risk to be stolen by scammers.

Reach Out

If you’ve checked all the above boxes off but are still unsure if a payday loan offer is legitimate, contact the company offering the money directly. Speedy Cash Canada doesn’t want anyone to because a victim of a scam or fraud, and we will be happy to confirm whether an offer someone claiming to be an employee is real or not.

It is important to use caution when obtaining contact information. Do not click any links within suspicious emails or text messages. Instead, search directly for the company through your internet browser. (Speedy Cash Canada’s contact information is all right here!)

Once you contact their customer service or inquiry department, they should be able to clarify whether the person who contacted you is affiliated with their company or if it’s fraudulent.

I Became a Victim – Now What?

Did you know that nine out of 10 targets and/or victims of fraud do not report it? By letting it slide, scam artists get away with their wrongdoings and will most likely continue to do so. The first step to take if you suspect you’ve been a victim of fraud is to notify the RCMP. They can create a file with any information regarding your case to help prevent future occurrences.

Your next step would be to contact your financial institution to change your passwords and to inquire about freezing withdrawals.

Finally, you should contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501 or by going to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Website.

Remember the Golden Rule

Always keep in mind regarding any offer that if it seems too good to be true, it likely is. Scam artists and fraudsters will find victims regardless of their demographic, so if you practice due diligence, your personal information – and your finances – should be safe.

For more information on how to protect yourself against fraud, check out this article published by the Government of Canada.