Meeting strangers from the internet can sometimes get a little sketchy. There’s no denying that feeling of uncertainty that comes with buying or selling something on sites like Kijiji, Facebook Marketplace, or Craigslist.
Fortunately, the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) has come up with a solution: secure exchange zones.
On Wednesday the police force announced that they would be adding seven new secure trading areas for online shoppers to initiate and complete their transactions. This brings the total number of these areas across the island to 11.
The new zones are as follows:
- PDQ 3 – Ile-Bizard, Pierrefonds, Sainte-Geneviève, Roxboro
- PDQ 8 – Lachine
- PDQ 16 – Nuns’ Island, Verdun
- PDQ 31 – Villeray, Parc-Extension
- PDQ 42 – Saint-Leonard
- PDQ 48 – Mercier—Hochelaga-Maisonneuve
- PDQ 49 – City of Montreal East, Pointe-aux-Trembles
These areas are permanently lit and monitored by cameras. They are also accessible 24 hours a day and seven days a week. The SPVM says the goal behind the initiative is to allow people to “conclude their transactions with peace of mind.”
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As for being vigilant and careful with online transactions, the SPVM recommends taking the following precautions:
- Do not pay for a good without having seen it
- Take precautions to identify the person you are dealing with
- Be extra vigilant when a user’s profile has a limited or non-existent history
- Beware of an offer that is too good to be true, it is probably a fraud.
To see the full list of secure exchange zones in Montreal, click here.
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