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Text messages demanding payment for unpaid parking tickets in Saskatoon are a scam, the City of Saskatoon says.
In a news release on March 27, the city said it does not use any texting services, and warned residents that messages demanding people pay up are fake.
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The city also said people can check for any unpaid tickets on its website here and entering a driver’s licence number.
The city also said it does not use robocalls or emails and never requests credit card or bank account information from customers via phone, text or email.
Scammers typically use the information they gather by texts like these to get money or commit identity theft, and the city said people should block suspicious phone numbers and not click on suspicious web links.
Anyone who has been a victim of fraud should contact their bank, report it to Saskatoon Police Service at their website or the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.
The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, which collects information on fraud and identity theft and provides information on past and current scams affecting Canadians, says that as of Sept. 30, 2025 it had recorded 23,113 fraud victims across the country with reported losses of $444 million.
Fraud reports can be made online here or by calling 1-888-495-8501.
Smishing scams on the rise
The scam fall under the category of smishing, according to the fraud centre. Smishing is a mix of the words SMS and phishing in which a text message is used to try to get the target to click on a link and provide personal information.
The centre says so-called smishing attempts appear to be on the rise, thanks in part to new technologies that allow for co-ordinated bulk attacks.
The centre’s communications outreach officer Jeff Horncastle says smishing is “more than likely increasing” with help from artificial intelligence tools that can craft convincing messages or scour data from security breaches to uncover new targets.
The ruse comes in many forms but often involves a message that purports to come from a real organization or business urging immediate action to address an alleged problem.
It could be about an undeliverable package, a suspended bank account or news of a tax refund.
Horncastle says it differs from more involved scams such as a text invitation to call a supposed job recruiter, who then tries to extract personal or financial information by phone.
Nevertheless, he says a text scam might be quite sophisticated since today’s fraudsters can use artificial intelligence to scan data leaks for personal details that bolster the hoax, or use AI writing tools to help write convincing text messages.
“In the past, part of our messaging was always: watch for spelling mistakes. It’s not always the case now,” he says.
“Now, this message could be coming from another country where English may not be the first language but because the technology is available, there may not be spelling mistakes like there were a couple of years ago.”
Horncastle said AI is a frequent tool for all sorts of nefarious schemes such as manipulated photos, video and audio.
“It’s more than likely increasing due to different types of technology that’s available for fraudsters,” Horncastle says of smishing attempts.
“So we would discuss AI a lot where fraudsters now have that tool available to them. It’s just reality, right? Where they can craft phishing messages and send them out in bulk through automation through these highly sophisticated platforms that are available.”
The Competition Bureau’s deputy commissioner Josephine Palumbo said it’s difficult to track down fraudsters who sometimes use prepaid SIM cards to shield their identity when targeting victims.
“Since SIM cards lack identification verification, enforcement agencies like the Competition Bureau have a hard time in actually tracking these perpetrators down,” Palumbo says.
Fraudsters can also spoof phone numbers, making it seem like a text has originated with a legitimate agency such as the Canada Revenue Agency, Horncastle adds.
“They might choose a number that they want to show up randomly or if they’re claiming to be a financial institution, they may make that financial institutions’ number show up on the call display,” he says.
“We’ve seen (that) with the CRA and even the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, where fraudsters have made our phone numbers show up on victims’ call display.”
— with files from The Canadian Press
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