Police warn of scammers spoofing police department phone numbers

Multiple police departments across the Lower Mainland are warning the public of scammers mirroring non-emergency police department numbers in an attempt to gain personal information and money.

Fraudsters are using technology to make it appear the call is coming from the police. The New Westminster Police Department said in a release that once the call is answered, scammers may be able to fabricate an officer’s name and badge number to attempt to gain trust and information.

“As of this morning we’ve had callers as far away as Toronto asking to confirm if the call made to them was real,” Sergeant Andrew Leaver said in a news release. “Approximately thirty people this morning have called us about suspicious calls from someone claiming to be one of our officers.”

The Port Moody Police Department and Abbotsford Police Department have also confirmed that their numbers have been spoofed.

The public is cautioned when receiving calls from the following numbers:

• 604-525-5411
• 604-859-5225
• 604-461-3456

“Please remember, Abby PD will never randomly call you to request personal information over the phone,” Abbotsford Police said on X.

Police are reminding residents that they should never provide personal information over the phone to an unknown caller. If you are unsure if a call from one of these numbers is legit, you can call the corresponding police departments’ non-emergency lines.