Cash prize emails sent out due to ‘error,’ says Canadian tech company

The splash screen for the Wealthsimple app is seen on a smartphone in a photo illustration made in Toronto. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Giordano Ciampini

Popular Canadian financial technology company Wealthsimple says a “technical error” resulted in emails being sent out to some users informing them they won cash prizes.

A spokesperson for Wealthsimple confirmed to CTVNews.ca in a statement Friday that the company had sent out an email to a “small group” of contest participants that “incorrectly referenced a prize associated with a marketing campaign.”

“This was due to a technical error, which we identified and fixed quickly,” Wealthsimple chief growth officer Simon Lejeune said. “The app was not affected, and clients can check there to confirm their actual Monthly Millionaire status.”

“We know this is disappointing, and we apologize to anyone who received the incorrect email,” Lejeune added.

Some Reddit users said they received emails claiming they had won thousands of dollars in cash prizes, asking them to sign a declaration and release form, in addition to taking a skill-testing question. The prize money would then be added to their chequing account, the email said.

According to one Reddit user, they were told they had won a $10,000 cash prize only for it to mean 10,000 entries. Another had a similar experience, where the email notified them of $5,000 in winnings, but turned out to be 5,000 entries.

“What makes it even more misleading is the week prior I won a $3 cash prize and it was real money and it’s the email was the same wording and visuals as my hoax $5,000 cash prize (just entries),” one Reddit user wrote.

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