The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

www.insideHALTON.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Friday, February 7, 2014 | 6 When an absolute stranger offers you money for nothing -- completely out of the blue -- you can be fairly certain it's a scam. If someone you don't know contacts you to suggest your computer needs software support to protect it from possible personal security breaches, don't believe them. If anyone calls or emails you, claiming to be from a bank or government agency and requesting personal information and/or bank account details, hang up on them or delete their email without replying. It's not rude, it's simply survival in today's digital jungle. According to Halton police, legitimate business simply isn't conducted this way and today's digitalage con artist is relying on trusting members of society to fall prey to their attempts to access information that could lead to the loss of thousands of dollars, theft of your identity -- perhaps both. The adage "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is" is sound advice, considering a stranger's access to someone's personal information can prove quite costly. And this week, (see story on p.9), Halton police are advising residents to be wary about who they give their personal information to following a recent surge in Internet and other scams. Police said two Internet scams currently making appearances in Halton include the malicious software trick in which victims receive a phone call from someone claiming to represent a software rm and offering to x their computer. A second Internet scam, called phishing, involves someone receiving emails from a fraudster posing as nancial institution or government organization. Police are also warning of what's called the mystery shopper scam, in which a person is enticed by someone, claiming to represent a business, to take work as a mystery shopper for that business. To avoid becoming a victim of online, phone and other forms of fraud, there are numerous resources readily available to consumers. The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre's website -- www.antifraudcentre.ca -- shares the latest fraudulent activity sweeping our country, answers the most-commonly asked questions about fraud, while encouraging people to `recognize it, report it, stop it'. The Competition Bureau's Information Centre site -- www.competitionbureau.gc.ca -- includes a fraud prevention resource to help people recognize common approaches by fraud artists and understand how to best protect themselves from being victimized. The website's Little Black Book of Scams provides a comprehensive list of most commonly perpetrated fraudulent activities. Finally, Halton police provide information about frauds and scams, identity theft, safe Internet surfing, online safety tips, protecting privacy and more at http://bit.ly/1k7Usz2. Scam artists on the prowl M A T T E R S Editorial O F "Connected to your Community" H E A R T 447 Speers Road, Oakville ON, L6K 3S4 General Inquiries: (905) 845-3824 Editorial Department: (905) 632-0588 Classi ed Advertising: (905) 632-4440 Circulation: 5300 Harvester Rd., Burlington (905) 631-6095 Volume 52 | Number 17 T H E The Oakville Beaver is a division of Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. Vice ­President and Group Publisher of Metroland West Regional General Manager Halton Region Editor in Chief Advertising Director NEIL OLIVER DAVID HARVEY JILL DAVIS DANIEL BAIRD Managing Editor ANGELA BLACKBURN February is Heart and Stroke Month and in honour of that, the Heart & Stroke Foundation ag was raised at Oakville Town Hall this week. Helping with the job are, from left, Heart and Stroke Foundation Halton Manager Kate White, Oakville resident and Foundation ambassador Ernie Nock and Ward 6 Town and Regional Councillor Tom Adams. The Foundation has volunteers going door-to-door for its annual canvass to raise funds for research and programming related to heart health. | photo by Eric Riehl ­ Oakville Beaver (Follow on Twitter @halton_ photog or facebook.com/HaltonPhotog) RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director Business Manager Director of Production SANDY PARE MARK DILLS MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager Director of Distribution Letters to the editor CHARLENE HALL KIM MOSSMAN Circulation Manager A thank you to someone who helped out We visited Claude's Vacuum Shop on Kerr Street in Oakville. Our problem was not related to vacuums, but on two occasions, the gentleman at this shop helped us solve the situation. He is a friendly, knowledgeable person whose conversation made our day an informative, rewarding experience. Thank you, Donald Hellam. Joe and Lois Minard, Oakville Proud Official Media Sponsor For: Canadian Circulations Audit Board Member Recognized for Excellence by Ontario Community Newspapers Association Canadian Community Newspapers Association Wednesday should have been a snow day It was really dif cult to comprehend the reason why the Halton District School Board (HDSB) did not close schools Wednesday morning. At 3 p.m. it was still snowing and many parents were out on the road to collect their children from school in about 15-20 centimetres of snow. School transportation was cancelled for students, leaving other kids, who do not ride a bus, feeling pressured to go to school. Furthermore, it is a fact that most accidents happen within one mile of home, even without inclement weather. In fact, I heard there was a three-car pile-up just down the road from my house. I am wondering who has the authority to decide whether one child's life is more valuable than another. As far as I am concerned, when there is inclement weather, no child should have to travel to school. When childcare is needed, these parents should have a back-up plan for their children in the winter months. Furthermore, it's hard to believe that the Halton District School Board had the audacity to cancel its meeting Wednesday night due to inclement weather after keeping the schools open. That's outrageous. In the future, I would like to see snow days for all the children in inclement weather. Someone should make that decision. Tina Day, Oakville Proud Official Media Sponsor For: The Oakville Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerations and grammar. In order to be published all letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. Letters should be addressed to: The Editor, Oakville Beaver, 5040 Mainway, Burlington ON, L7L 7G5, or via e-mail to; ablackburn@oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite 206, Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M7. Phone 416-340-1981. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the event of a typographical error, that portion of advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for, but the balance of the advertisement will be paid for at the applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize advertisements or decline.