News Release

Vancouver - The British Columbia Securities Commission's InvestRight program featuring a RED-FLAGS communications campaign, designed to alert investors about some of the most common fraudulent sales pitches, will be in Penticton this weekend.  BCSC staff will be participating in the Home, Leisure & Outdoor Living Show 2007 in Penticton with a booth setup as well as holding an InvestRight seminar on Saturday, March 10th at 11 am at the show.

The seminar - free for those attending the show - will help people learn about how to make informed investment decisions. People will hear what could happen if they don't know how to spot the five RED FLAGS of investment fraud. They will see a video of fraud victims talking about what could happen if investors don't do their homework. People will learn how to protect themselves from being scammed.

Members of the media are invited to attend the Saturday seminar to learn more about investment scams and how people can protect themselves from fraud. Media can also arrange for interviews with the BCSC presenter - Patricia Bowles - on either Friday or Saturday by contacting the BCSC in advance.

InvestRight was created to help protect investors from fraud and to give them the tools they need to ask the right questions before making investment decisions. The program is being implemented in conjunction with campaign partners that include The Better Business Bureau (Lower Mainland, Vancouver Island and the Interior), the BC Crime Prevention Association and the BC Hydro Power Pioneers, a BC Hydro retiree Senior's Safety and Crime Prevention Wise Owl program.

InvestRight is a one-stop resource for investors to educate themselves on how to make informed investment decisions. Its comprehensive website at www.InvestRight.org provides a wide range of tools to help investors develop critical thinking skills they need to protect themselves - information such as how to do background checks, investment products, a scam meter and video clips from victims of investment fraud. A RED-FLAGS communications campaign has been launched to alert investors to common sales pitches used by scam artists along with a province wide seminar program. If you have questions or problems with an investment or a financial adviser, please call 604-899-6854 or 1-800-373-6393 (toll-free in BC & Alberta).

The BC Securities Commission is the independent provincial government agency responsible for regulating trading in securities within the province.