BC Transit is warning its riders of a scam, in which a Facebook page is posing as its digital payment system offering riders deals for an annual pass.
Umo is the payment system that BC Transit launched in Victoria in August 2023, then has rolled out to a number of its other regions around the province through the year.
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The payment system allows riders to either load an app or a physical card with credits to be used to ride the bus.
Fares for Umo can be bought through the app or with a number of vendors around the Capital Regional District.
Now, BC Transit is warning riders of a scam where the Facebook page posing as its fare payment system is offering a deal using a fraudulent link.
“We do not sell Umo products on social media,” BC Transit said in an Instagram post. “Never click on any link you receive that you don’t trust, and don’t provide your personal or credit card information to an unsecured site.”
“We’ve reported the page several times and encourage customers to report it if they see it as well.”
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This scam is one commonly referred to as phishing, where a scammer poses as a trusted entity in order for people to give personal information, including banking or credit card information.
The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre says criminals use tactics like spoofing an email or website name, requests to click links or download attachments, or instructions to scan a QR code.
Phishing scams often pose as entities like a bank, online subscription service or a business in order to get you to hand over information.
“A variation of phishing scams are messages with minimal text that encourage you to click on links or download attachments,” the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre says.
“The message may seem to be a receipt from a recent purchase, a delivery notification, or something more urgent, such as a notice to appear in court. If you click on the link or attachment, your computer is infected with a virus or malware.”
In order to prevent falling victim to phishing, the anti-fraud centre advises people to not click on links from unsolicited messages, don’t download attachments from unsolicited messages, watch for spelling mistakes, and don’t trust a message just because the email address looks legitimate.
More information, including examples of phishing scams, can be found on the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre website.
Laura Brougham
