Ottawa residents, add this to your list of things to watch out for: the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) is warning the public about scammers who are calling people while pretending to be police officers, and in some cases, spoofing the actual phone numbers of OPP detachments to make the calls look legitimate.
What's happening
According to the OPP, scammers across Ontario have been placing calls to residents while impersonating officers. Some of these calls use spoofing technology, meaning the number that shows up on your call display can appear to be a real OPP detachment line, even though the call isn't coming from police at all. That makes the scam more convincing than a typical robocall or random unknown number, since caller ID can no longer be trusted as proof of who's actually on the other end.
While the OPP hasn't specified exact scripts being used in every case, scams like this typically follow a familiar pattern: the caller claims there's a warrant out for your arrest, an unpaid fine, a missed court date, or a family member in trouble, and pressures the victim to pay immediately via gift cards, e-transfer, or cryptocurrency to avoid "arrest" or further legal action. Real police never demand payment over the phone to resolve a warrant or fine.
Why this matters for Ottawa
The OPP patrols provincial highways and many communities in the wider Ottawa region, including parts of eastern Ontario just outside the city, and OPP detachment numbers are the kind of thing a lot of Ottawa-area residents might recognize or trust if it popped up on their phone. With spoofing technology in play, that trust is exactly what scammers are exploiting. Ottawa is also covered locally by the Ottawa Police Service, so residents may see calls that reference either police service, and scammers often bank on people not knowing the difference between municipal and provincial policing in the moment.
Ottawa has seen its own share of phone and text-based scams in recent years, from fake CRA calls to bank fraud alerts, so this latest warning fits a broader pattern local residents should already be wary of.
How to protect yourself
The OPP is advising residents to treat unexpected calls claiming to be from police with caution, even if the number looks legitimate. If you get a call like this:
- Hang up and call the police detachment back directly using a number you look up yourself, not one provided by the caller
- Never provide personal information, banking details, or payment of any kind over the phone to someone claiming to be police
- Remember that real police do not ask for payment via gift cards, e-transfer, or cryptocurrency to clear a warrant or fine
- Report suspicious calls to your local police service and to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre
If you're in Ottawa and receive a suspicious call claiming to be from police, you can verify it by contacting the Ottawa Police Service non-emergency line directly, rather than calling back any number given to you during the suspicious call itself.
Source: Global News Ottawa
