BC Hydro has issued a warning to customers that scams have spiked since announcing their COVID-19 Relief Fund on April 1.
The province’s electricity provider has said it has seen a 350 per cent increase in reported scams in April compared to March.
Since announcing a 3-month credit on power bills at the beginning of the month, BC Hydro said it has had over 500 reported incidents of attempted scams targeting its customers. The organization added that the scams have gotten more sophisticated too.
BC Hydro said there have been two types of reoccurring scams.
One of these scams involves a fraudster “threatening service disconnection for an overdue account.”
BC Hydro said in a press release that it has suspended all disconnections for non-payment and is asking customers to keep an eye out for:
- Automated calls or fake bill notification emails from scammers posing as BC Hydro employees, threatening disconnection for an overdue bill. Fraudsters will ask customers to call a 1-877 number to make a payment and the number links to a replica of BC Hydro’s phone system. The scammers then proceed to ask the customer to purchase pre-paid credit cards or deposit money into a bitcoin ATM wallet to avoid disconnection.
- A phishing scam where customers receive a text message that appears to be from BC Hydro, indicating that they are eligible for a refund. Customers are then directed to click a link to submit their banking information for deposit.
In an effort to keep customers from falling victim to these scams, BC Hydro outlined the following:
- It has suspended all disconnections for non-payment during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- It does not collect credit card or bank account information over the phone, by email or text.
- It does not accept payment from pre-paid cash or credit cards, or bitcoin ATM.
- It does not offer refunds or credits through Interac e-transfer.
If a customer doubts the authenticity of an email, text, or phone call, they should call BC Hydro at 1 800 BCHYDRO (1 800 224 9376) or check their MyHydro account. Customers are also encouraged to report suspected fraud to their local police department.
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