TASK FORCE TO MAKE APARTMENTS SAFER
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DIGITAL WAVE IS JUST BEGINNING
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HEALTHY FEET, HAPPY FEET
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WEDNESDAY
APRIL 9 2014 www.newwestnewsleader.com
Everyone in the top-10 list with outstanding fines for unpaid fares has at least 35 tickets. See Page A20
Bailey bridge battle brews Gary McKenna Black Press
MARIO BARTEL/NEWSLEADER
John Piskorik’s seven-year-old computer is dead after a phone scammer was able to access it remotely and cause damage.
Senior targeted by computer scammer Mario Bartel
photo@newwestnewsleader.com
John Piskorik is learning how to use his new computer. He’d rather not. But when a phone scammer convinced the 83-year-old New West resident his seven-year-old computer was vulnerable to an insidious virus, he gave him the information needed to access his hard drive remotely and inflict damage. Piskorik didn’t give the scammer the $200 he requested for the “warranty” service he performed.
Nor did he tell him his banking took the call. information. But he admits a little Piskorik said the caller identified embarrassment that the scammer himself as being from a company got as far as he did, and he hopes called PC Help & Support, in Ohio. his story will alert He spoke with a others who may get thick accent. similar calls. The scammer Joe Smith Piskorik uses his said they’d Lab Top Computers computer for email, Once you give them access, been alerted to research and to play it’s trouble. “unusual activity” solitaire before going on his computer to bed. caused by a “hydra infection.” If He says the scammer was it wasn’t dealt with immediately, persistent and convincing. In fact, his computer would crash. That his wife had previously hung up on worried Piskorik. him three times before he finally He didn’t want to lose all the
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email addresses for family, friends and the organizations he belongs to. He didn’t want to lose his nightly solitaire game. The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre says seniors are more susceptible to phone scams because they’re more trusting and less likely to end a conversation. Scammers also like to build a relationship with their target and gain their trust. Piskorik said the scammer kept him on the line for about an hour. He instructed Piskorik how to give him remote access to his hard drive Please see BEST DEFENCE, A3
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New Westminster’s decision to proceed on its own to replace the single-lane Bailey Bridge is being blasted by Coquitlam Mayor Richard Stewart. The bridge connects the two cities. It’s been out of commission since March when engineers discovered cracks in the structure. Stewart said because the crossing is an inter-municipal road, New West’s actions are illegal. He said Coquitlam should have been consulted before plans were put in place. “New Westminster doesn’t have the right to do anything unilaterally,” Stewart said. “It would be really unfortunate if they were able to circumvent the dispute resolution mechanism.” The two cities are currently going to arbitration to decide the future of the crossing. Coquitlam has been pushing for a two-lane bridge while New West said its roads cannot handle the traffic volume that would come with widening the span. Stewart said he was personally assured by Mayor Wayne Wright weeks ago the bridge would be fixed rather than replaced. see NOT ILLEGAL, A8