Scam artists use Rogers wireless outage as a lure by offering fake compensation

TORONTO — Scam artists have been using last week’s wireless outage at Rogers Communications Inc. as a way to trick people into clicking on fraudulent links.

One fake claim that’s made its way to social media falsely says in capital letters that R0GERS WIRELESS INC. is offering a $50 credit to make up for the inconvenience if people click on a link.

One clue that it’s a fake is that the message spells Rogers with a zero instead of an O, though that’s harder to see because the company name is spelled in capital letters.

In addition, Rogers is offering credits but that $50 flat-rate figure is bogus and the link is potentially dangerous because it doesn’t come from Rogers.

A Rogers spokesman says the real credit is equal to one day’s service, so the amount depends on the customer, and a credit will go automatically to May bills, so don’t click on the link.

A Rogers web page about frauds and scams also asks anybody who gets a suspicious text message to forward it to 7726 (SPAM) because the company doesn’t send credit notifications by text.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 27, 2021.

Companies in this story: (TSX:RCI.B)

The Canadian Press