Deceptive mailouts, unwanted office supplies and fake directory advertising scams have been circulating for years. Individuals and businesses are still becoming victims of these fraudulent mailings.

Tips to Protect Yourself and Your Business

• If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
• Instruct your temporary employees not to accept anything or confirm any orders for office supplies or directory listings.
• Train your employees to watch for invoices for products or services that you have not requested.
• Don’t respond to a company you have never heard of. Contact your local BBB to see if they have received any complaints.
• Do not sign and return unsolicited faxes.
• If you are getting rid of documents that have your company’s confidential information on it (e.g. bills and bank statements), shred them.
• Don’t be fooled by glossy and colourful mailouts. Scam artists are professionals and know how to make things look real.
• Once you respond to a mailout, you may be added to a sucker list and your company’s name will be resold. Stop the cycle at the beginning.

Report It

Please note that Consumer Protection BC is only responsible for consumer-to-business transactions and is unable to offer assistance with business-to-business transactions. If your company is a victim of suspicious mailings, we recommend reporting it to your local BBB or the Canada Antifraud Centre . To reduce unsolicited mail from companies that belong to the Canadian Marketing Association, call 1-416-391-2362 or visit www.the-cma.org.

To view Consumer Protection BC's media release about deceptive mailouts, please click here.