Police warn about safe Internet use

York Regional Police are warning residents to be careful on the Internet after a Richmond Hill resident received a fraudulent e-mail.

Police said they were called to a home Friday after an e-mail was received from a fraudulent company. The message stated that if the user did not provide his card number and password information, his Toronto Dominion Canada Trust Internet bank account would expire. A bogus Web link, called TD Canada Trust Easy Web, was provided to the victim in the e-mail, allowing the victim to enter the information. The Web site looked very similar to the actual TD Canada Trust Web site, but the Web domain was in Hong Kong.

Police are reminding residents and business owners to follow these safety tips to prevent Internet frauds like this from occurring:  Be cautious of sharing personal information online;  Never give your password to anyone;  Ensure that the company is reputable before signing up for something online or giving out a credit card number;  Always remember that people on-line may not be who they say they are. Treat everyone online as though they were strangers;  If you ever receive unwanted, offensive, mean, threatening, suspicious, or harassing e-mail, do not respond to it. Contact police, and they will investigate;  If you are a business owner who allows purchases over the Internet, be aware if there is no signature from the consumer and it is a fraudulent transaction, the purchase will be charged back to your business;  Maintain your credit card statements and verify all transactions with your receipts;  When you make a purchase with a credit card, always keep the receipt, then shred it or properly dispose of it so your number is not compromised or duplicated by criminals;  If you are not sure about any Web site or e mail, contact the company directly via telephone.