It can be financially devastating when one falls for one of these scams. Especially seniors today, who still are the most vulnerable to be taken by scammers. Trusting Canadians have lost hundreds of thousands of dollars, often to overseas scammers, believing that they are being threatened by Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) for outstanding tax bills.
First and foremost, know that CRA will never leave threatening phone messages. They will also never demand immediate payment by Western Union, e-transfer, prepaid credit card, bitcoin or any form of gift cards from popular retailers (ie: Amazon, Apple, etc).
If in doubt with the legitamacy of the call, check by calling CRA directly. Their official phone numbers are listed on their website. Their current toll free number is 1-800-959-8281. Here is the link to CRA’s website https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/corporate/contact-information/telephone-numbers.html#h1.
And don’t worry, they will never threaten you with police intervention or jail time over the phone.