Fraud seminar held to help people guard themselves against latest scams

as advancements in fraud due to more advanced technology, authentication with cards, employee involvement in fraudulent activity and more were talked about. Patterson finished off his presentation by taking questions from the audience.

Before the guests departed, Patterson and the Libro Credit Union staff made sure to stress the importance of reporting fraud.

“It may feel embarrassing, but it is well worth the effort of getting back your money, and saving others from having the same thing happen to them,” concluded Patterson.

By Hailey Zimmerman

Libro Credit Union and Amherstburg Community Services (ACS) co-hosted a fraud presentation last week to assist people in staying safe.

With the help of the Windsor Police ServiceAmherstburg Detachment, the public had a chance to learn about the latest frauds and how to combat them.

Upon people’s entry at last Tuesday afternoon’s seminar, they were welcomed with large portions of pizza, and they were offered a place to sit. There were around 35 to 45 people in attendance. When everyone was content with food, the presentation, hosted by Const. Sean Patterson, started.

Patterson was engaging with the audience, and he talked about a broad variety of topics to do with fraud. He talked principally about what you should do in any case of fraud, and used his own experiences to relate himself to what he was saying.

“Fraud happens to the best of us. I get it, I was also a victim of fraud a few times in my life,” says Patterson.

Patterson moved on to talk about the different types of fraud. He says it could take place disguised as a bank investment call, Home renovations, public utility and telemarketing. He elaborated on each type of fraud, and explained the dangers from each separately.

“Do stores come to you for you to buy stuff? For the most part, no. You usually go to a business to buy their products, and not the other way around. It’s small stuff like this that could indicate fraudulent activity,” continued Patterson on the dangers of renovations fraud.

The presentation also warned people to never give their PIN number in their cards to anyone, as well as to stay in control of any situation regarding their own money.

“When fraudsters call, they heavily rely on time, and making it seem like they do not have a lot of time, and pressure, like pressuring people into spending their money on something they don’t even want. Always remember that if whatever they are trying to sell you sounds too good, it usually is because it’s too good to be true. Fraudsters are easy to recognize. If they talk and walk like a duck, it usually means that they really are a duck,” says Patterson.

One personal experience Patterson shared with the audience was his wedding fraud story.

“Me and my wife were planning to go on a honeymoon after our wedding. When I went to pay for our honeymoon with my card, it was declined. I later found out that someone took the money out of my account. Thank god for in laws, or we wouldn’t have even had the chance to have a honeymoon,” finished Patterson.

Before the end of the presentation, other topics such