Be an informed investor - Don't be fooled by fraudsters misrepresenting themselves.
December 6, 2021 (Toronto, Ontario) – The Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) is warning Canadian investors not to be fooled by the website InteractiveBrokerage.net.
InteractiveBrokerage.net is falsely representing itself to be the website for IIROC-registered firm Interactive Brokers Canada Inc., when in fact the genuine website is interactivebrokers.ca.
Some fake websites look nearly identical to the trusted institution's website with the same logo, brand, and likeness; others copy legitimate websites but change the firm's name and contact details. Calls to the phone numbers provided in the contact details typically reach a scammer pretending to be an employee of the IIROC-regulated firm.
Investors have recently contacted IIROC reporting cold calls being made to Canadians urging them to immediately open an account with "Interactive Brokers" through the fraudulent website InteractiveBrokerage.net.
Victims of this type of scam should contact their local securities regulator.
Tips to protect yourself:
- Before working with any investment firm, verify the firm is regulated by IIROC.
- Compare and confirm websites. Carefully check the domain names of any websites you visit and cross-reference contact details on the website with other resources.
- Immediately question any cold call pushing you urgently to invest with an unknown firm.
- Do an internet search for the company to determine if the website is legitimate or duplicates the company's website.
- Check for misspellings or variations on the company name on the website or email address.
- The Canadian Securities Administrators provide investor alerts.
Investors can also check the background, qualifications and any disciplinary history of investment advisors registered with IIROC by checking the free AdvisorReport.
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About IIROC:
IIROC is the pan-Canadian self-regulatory organization that oversees all investment dealers and their trading activity in Canada's debt and equity markets. IIROC sets high quality regulatory and investment industry standards, protects investors and strengthens market integrity while supporting healthy Canadian capital markets. IIROC carries out its regulatory responsibilities through setting and enforcing rules regarding the proficiency, business and financial conduct of 174 Canadian investment dealer firms of varying sizes and business models, and their more than 31,000 registered employees. IIROC also sets and enforces market integrity rules regarding trading activity on Canadian debt and equity marketplaces. For more information, visit www.iiroc.ca.
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