The Toronto Police Service would like to make the public aware of a fraud involving pizza delivery vehicles.
It is reported that:
- a dark colored vehicle equipped with a Domino’s Pizza sign has been attending large retail store parking lots. A female suspect poses as a customer and the male suspect poses as the delivery driver
- the female suspect approaches the victim asking for help paying for the pizza delivery fee with a debit card as the driver is not accepting cash
- the victim is then convinced to help by letting the female suspect use their debit card to pay for the pizza in exchange for receiving cash. The victim is then taken over to the vehicle where they provide the male suspect with their debit card
- the victim then enters their PIN number into a modified point of sale terminal that records their PIN and debit card information
- after the transaction is successful, the victim is given another bank card that resembles their own, and the victim accepts the cash from the female suspect before leaving
- the suspects are now in possession of the victim’s debit card and use the PIN to make a number of fraudulent purchases and/or withdrawals
The Toronto Police would like to remind the public to be vigilant when conducting any type of debit or credit transactions. Some steps to protect yourself include:
- Be skeptical. Most legitimate delivery services accept cash, so if someone tries to convince you otherwise, this a red flag that this may be a scam
- Never hand your card over or disclose your PIN to anyone else
- if you do hand over your card, ensure that the card that is returned to you is your card
- if you’re asked to insert or tap your card, beware of fake wireless point of sale terminals or those not connected to the internet. If something seems strange, don’t go through with the transaction
If you think you may be a victim of debit card fraud, contact your bank immediately and they will take the appropriate steps to protect you. For example they may block your card to prevent losses, ask you to change your PIN or cancel your card and issue you a new one.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-4200, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), or at www.222tips.com.