The Alberta Securities Commission (ASC) is helping Albertans make sure they actually protect their money and don’t lose their cash when investing for their future.

March is Fraud Prevention Month and the ASC kicked things off by asking Calgarians to wake up and smell the coffee at Rosso Coffee Roasters in the southeast.

Representatives handed out free coffee and information on steps, including what questions to ask before investing, to avoid investment fraud.

According to a recent survey by the ASC, very few Albertans, only one quarter, actually check into the background of a person trying to set up investments for them.

Making matters worse, many Albertans don’t realize most fraudulent investments are with so-called experts that have been introduced to them through friends, neighbours, coworkers and even family members.

Alison Trollope, Director of Communications with ASC, says there are key red flags that people should look out for including guaranteed rates of high return. “Scammers will tell you that it’s your lucky day that you can get guaranteed ten per cent. Your mom always told you that if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is, and you should listen to your mom.”

Other red flags include:

·         Schemes to send money offshore to avoid taxes.

·         Reliance on social networks to promote the investment – “your friends can’t be wrong!”

·         Marketing materials that promote “insider tips – profit like the experts!”

·         Pressure to “get in now,” rather than taking the time to thoroughly research the investment.

ASC research shows there isn’t one demographic that’s immune from investment fraud, however Trollope says they find most incidents seems to be in the 45 year old to 65 year old range, “folks who are looking at their investments for their retirement, maybe thinking that they don’t think that they have enough, and then potentially taking on more risk, or ignoring some of the red flags, hoping to have a higher rate of return, but could turn out quite disastrously.”

The Alberta Securities Commission has set up a website which provides people in our province with valuable investor education tools and resources to help them avoid losing their life savings.

For more information on how to avoid investment fraud click HERE: