FRAUD PREVENTION
In response to the data leak that occurred in May 2024, this page is dedicated to providing information on how to protect your personal information.
The information leaked in this instance was info selected from the database by our staff to create the Directory – there was no infiltration of the actual database and no access to personal financial information that the congregation has for some individuals for pledge payments.
Unfortunately, churches are often targeted because there is a level of trust that is being exploited by scammers. Clergy scams are indeed a growing problem, and they prey on the trusting by exploiting trust and goodwill. These impostors pose as religious leaders, church staff or board members to deceive unsuspecting congregants. Scammers can strike via email, text, phone or letter mail.
Staff WILL NOT send unsolicited emails, texts or phone calls requesting favours, money, gift cards, etc. Please report and delete any emails or texts of this nature. Hang up the phone if you receive a suspicious call.
If you receive any suspicious communications, PLEASE do not engage. If you are concerned, contact the sender by a different method (ie if you received a suspicious text, phone the person) to confirm whether they were the sender. Do not reply to the email or text using the suspicious address or phone number. Preferably, just delete the email or text, or hang up the phone.
Here’s how church scams typically unfold:
Be Skeptical
It is likely a scam if someone is:
Protect Yourself
Also:
REMEMBER:
You are never obligated to engage with anyone or any thing you haven’t actively sought out on your own.
You can report suspicious emails to your email provider. For more info on reporting an email as phishing:
For information specific to gmail, go here.
For information specific to Google go here.
For information specific to Outlook go here.
For information specific to Cogeco go here.
For information from the government of Ontario go here.
For information from the government of Canada go here.
-May 24, 2024
The information leaked in this instance was info selected from the database by our staff to create the Directory – there was no infiltration of the actual database and no access to personal financial information that the congregation has for some individuals for pledge payments.
Unfortunately, churches are often targeted because there is a level of trust that is being exploited by scammers. Clergy scams are indeed a growing problem, and they prey on the trusting by exploiting trust and goodwill. These impostors pose as religious leaders, church staff or board members to deceive unsuspecting congregants. Scammers can strike via email, text, phone or letter mail.
Staff WILL NOT send unsolicited emails, texts or phone calls requesting favours, money, gift cards, etc. Please report and delete any emails or texts of this nature. Hang up the phone if you receive a suspicious call.
If you receive any suspicious communications, PLEASE do not engage. If you are concerned, contact the sender by a different method (ie if you received a suspicious text, phone the person) to confirm whether they were the sender. Do not reply to the email or text using the suspicious address or phone number. Preferably, just delete the email or text, or hang up the phone.
Here’s how church scams typically unfold:
- Identity Hijacking: The scammers hijack the identity of a religious leader or an administrative staffer at a house of worship.
- Sob Stories: They reach out to congregants via text or email, sharing sob stories. For example, they might claim that a cancer patient urgently needs financial assistance, a family’s home has flooded, or someone lost their job.
- Unavailable Religious Leaders: The scammers provide excuses for why the religious leaders themselves can’t help directly. They often claim that the leaders are unavailable at that moment.
- Gift Card Scam: If the victim falls for the scam, they are instructed to buy gift cards (usually eBay or Amazon) and share the serial numbers and PINs with the impostor. Sometimes this scam includes instructions to keep the transaction a secret so as not to ruin a "surprise gift".
- Disappearing Act: Once the victim provides the funds/information, the scammers vanish, leaving their victims reeling.
Be Skeptical
It is likely a scam if someone is:
- Demanding immediate payment
- Requesting payment with cryptocurrency or gift cards
- Sending you a link to click on
- Asking for personal or financial information
Protect Yourself
- Always verify any unusual requests directly with the minister or the church office. Don’t rely solely on email or text messages.
- Pay attention to warnings from your email service.
- Never respond to any request for private info about yourself or others.
- Beware of any messages that sound urgent or too good to be true.
- Always check the email address and the name an email was sent from (the person’s name may be correct, but the email address is false).
- Notice the diction, grammar, tone, theological language, etc. and consider if it makes sense for the person the email is supposedly from.
- When in doubt call the person on the phone or contact them via another email or a messaging platform or etc. to confirm whether or not the email is truly from them.
Also:
- Improve your password protection and use different passwords for different accounts.
- Protect your mail and review your credit card and bank statements regularly.
- Check your credit report and report any errors or suspicious activities.
- Filter your phone calls and texts and block unwanted numbers.
- Do not answer or respond to phone calls, texts, or emails from unknown or suspicious sources.
- Do not share your personal or financial information with anyone who asks for it unexpectedly.
- Regularly update software and applications on your various devices
- Log out of apps on your phone or tablet that contain personal or financial information
- Shred any paper that contains personal information of yourself or others.
REMEMBER:
You are never obligated to engage with anyone or any thing you haven’t actively sought out on your own.
You can report suspicious emails to your email provider. For more info on reporting an email as phishing:
For information specific to gmail, go here.
For information specific to Google go here.
For information specific to Outlook go here.
For information specific to Cogeco go here.
For information from the government of Ontario go here.
For information from the government of Canada go here.
-May 24, 2024
