Broadcast Time: 08:00 AM
Date: Tuesday, December 21, 2021
Type: Community Safety Alert (CSA)
Occurrence #: N/A
The University of Toronto Campus Safety Special Constable Service is alerting the community about an ongoing work from home scam - fake employment offer that is targeting students.
U of T emails appear to have been compromised and utilized to post online employment offers or link to websites and later ask applicants to accept money through an e-transfer or deposit a cheque.
The applicant is told to withdraw funds (sometimes to pay for office supplies) from their own account and some are asked to deposit money into crypto currency accounts or purchase gift cards.
If cheques are provided by the scammers they are not honoured by the bank and the applicant is left with the outstanding debt.
Campus Safety is reminding everyone to exercise care and to thoroughly research any prospective employers and be suspicious of activity that requires you to deal with quantities of money or cryptocurrency in a work from home setting. Remember - hit P.A.U.S.E. before responding to any communication that you are unsure about.
If you believe your email has been compromised please report this immediately to the U of T ITS Security Team and exercise caution when using Wi-Fi connections that are not known to be secure.
If you have questions about protecting yourself from fraud, the following is an excellent source of information: https://www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca/index-eng.htm