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Published Apr 13, 2026 • Last updated 5 hours ago • 1 minute read
The Upper Ottawa Valley Detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police OPP is investigating a spear phishing fraud that was reported on March 31. A local business lost $3,000 after its email account was compromised. Photo by Ashley Taylor /jpg, BI, apsmcArticle content
Police are warning local businesses to be on guard after a phishing scam in the Upper Ottawa Valley led to financial loss.
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The Upper Ottawa Valley Detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) is investigating what is known as a Business Email Compromise (BEC) fraud, reported March 31. In the incident, a local business lost $3,000 after its email account was compromised, resulting in a customer unknowingly sending payment to a scammer.
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Officers say BEC scams, also referred to as spear phishing, are highly targeted and often involve criminals impersonating employees, executives or trusted vendors through email. The goal is to convince victims to transfer funds or share sensitive information.
According to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, Canadians reported losing $67.9 million to spear phishing scams in 2025, highlighting the growing impact of these schemes.
Police note that attackers often go to great lengths to make their communications appear legitimate. This can include spoofed email addresses, lookalike domains or even access to compromised accounts, allowing scammers to monitor conversations for weeks before acting.
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Common warning signs include urgent or secretive requests for payment, sudden changes to billing details and subtle differences in email addresses like the display name appearing correct, but the actual email address is slightly different.
Investigators are urging businesses to take precautions, including verifying payment requests through a second method such as a phone call, enabling multi-factor authentication on email accounts and ensuring staff are trained to recognize suspicious messages.
Anyone who believes they may have been targeted is advised to contact their financial institution immediately, report the incident to police and file a report with the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.
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