CIRO alerts investors to scams by fraudsters posing as employees, urging verification through official channels
The Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization (CIRO) is issuing a caution to Canadian investors regarding scammers impersonating CIRO employees to initiate investment recovery scams.
These fraudsters, using the email address [email protected] and claiming to be CIRO/OCRI staff, target investors through social media platforms like WhatsApp.
In these scams, fraudsters contact individuals who have previously been defrauded financially, promising to recover their lost funds for a fee.
They may also request remote access to the victim's computer or device. Ultimately, the scammers do not return any funds; instead, they may steal additional funds, leaving the victim defrauded once more.
CIRO has recently received complaints where individuals named Jason Reid and Yuri Gromov falsely represented themselves as CIRO employees. It is confirmed that neither individual is associated with CIRO, nor are they registered with any dealer firm regulated by CIRO.
The public can verify the registration of individuals authorized to offer financial advice in Canada through the National Registration Search on the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) website.
Additionally, CIRO’s Complaints & Inquiries team is available to confirm the authenticity of claims made by those purporting to represent CIRO.
CIRO officials emphasize that no legitimate CIRO employee will ever request payments from investors, and such requests should be viewed as immediate red flags.
Given the increasing sophistication of fraudsters in utilizing technology, CIRO advises investors to always verify independently any information obtained online.
Tools like the AdvisorReport for advisors registered with investment dealers and the CSA’s National Registrant Search can be used to check the background, qualifications, and disciplinary history of investment advisors registered with CIRO or the CSA.
Investors are urged not to trust unsolicited information and to always verify the credentials of financial advisors.
