A new scam aimed at seniors is claiming the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) is sending extra payments to low income seniors. Websites with false information describe benefits and some contain links to join Telegram or WhatsApp instant messaging groups.
It wasn’t too hard to find the proof of this. I was able to find a few sites with this claim, along with other false claims. Here is one such image I was able to get from one of the sites; There were several YouTube videos as well that I saw with this same info.
Not Helping The Confusion
Interestingly enough, which might actually be adding fuel to the fire in this case is an updated article on the Government of Canada website (https://canada.ca) that shows the following when performing a search :
The article date is from Feb 12, 2025, and it looks like there is a one-time payment…will be issued automatically… etc. But if you click the link and read the article, it is only in the middle that says August 16, 2021. This is an old article that was updated in February of this year.
You can read the article here, it is very confusing, since it looks like it is from Feb 12, 2025 but is actually from 2021.
Moral Of This Story
Do your research, don’t trust everything you read. What would happen in this case is you read about it or see it on YouTube, in a Facebook Reel etc. then you join the Telegram or WhatsApp instant messaging groups or get a call on it. They need to confirm some information with you first to be able to process it etc. Then they have access to your personal information, or even worse, access to your OAP.
Yes, the government has done something similar before and the last few years there have a lot of government cheques being handed out, from Carbon Tax Credits, to assistance that was happening at the beginning of Covid. It wouldn’t be far fetched to think that this is something else. Especially at a time that the government was changing powers, with the new leader of the Liberal party trying to get your trust by doing something like this while they were still in power, and the possibility of a new government forming after the election.
Timing is everything with scams. Always remember the 4 P’s and take a breath, pause and think.
Be sure to read about the others scams that are going around here.