Manitoba Hydro warns customers about 'sophisticated' scam calls

Manitoba Hydro is warning customers about a fresh rash of fake calls from scammers pretending to be Hydro and asking for money.

"These scam phone calls are sophisticated, using recordings that sound like Manitoba Hydro representatives," the Crown corporation wrote in a release Friday.

The callers are also "spoofing" one of the utility's real numbers: 1-888-624-9376.

The caution comes less than two months after a similar warning about callers using the same techniques.

Spoofing involves scammers using software to hide their real identities by showing a fake phone number on a target's call display. The software can replicate actual numbers on the call display, making people think the call is from a reputable business.

These scammers often call customers to say their account is in arrears and requires immediate payment, Hydro said in the release. The scammers may leave a voicemail asking customers to call a different number back, and tell customers they'll be disconnected if they don't pay.

"If you talk to them, they will pretend to look up your address and account number, and they'll try to 'arrange payment' at non-Hydro locations," the release said, typically at bitcoin machines throughout Winnipeg.

Manitoba Hydro doesn't accept payments over the phone, over PayPal, using credit cards, from wire transfers or from bitcoin ATMs, the utility wrote. Hydro has a list of legitimate payment options posted on its website.

The utility also warns never to call any number other than Hydro's four official numbers about your account. The official numbers are:

• 1-888-624-9376.
• 1-866-890-3856.
• 204-480-5900.
• 204-480-5901.

Winnipeg police are working with Hydro to stop the scammers.