The oversight body that monitors police in Ontario is warning residents to watch out for calls that appear to come from them.
The Special Investigations Unit says fraudsters have been spoofing their toll-free witness line number to gather personal information from the people they call.
The number that will appear on your phone is 1-800-787-8529. The caller will say there is an issue with your social insurance number and if you don’t continue the call by pressing 1 or 2, you could be charged or jailed.
The SIU says it does not make outgoing calls to collect that kind of information.
If you get a call of this nature, you’re asked to contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre: http://www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca/reportincident-signalerincident/index-eng.htm
You can also add your number to the Canadian Do-Not-Call List. https://lnnte-dncl.gc.ca/en
1-800-787-8529 is the number you would call if you’re a witness to an SIU investigation. The SIU investigates whenever police in Ontario are involved in a situation that leads to serious injury or death, and allegations of sexual assault against police officers.
