In accordance with a current Funds Canada examine, over 13% of Canadians have encountered cost fraud prior to now six months, an identical fee to the 14% reported in 2023. This persistent subject has made Canadians cautious of cost scams, affecting their cost behaviors and rising warning when coping with payments and monetary communications.
Fraud and cyber safety issues have a major affect on Canadians’ cost habits. Greater than half (54%) report that fraud dangers affect their decisions on how and the place they transact. Almost one in three Canadians (32%) battle to discern reliable payment-related communications from potential scams, and 22% concern lacking invoice funds on account of issues about fraud.
The highest fraud varieties skilled embrace unauthorized financial institution or bank card transactions (38%), impersonation by numerous communication channels (34%), and stolen bank card data (18%). Younger Canadians (18-34) are particularly susceptible to licensed push cost fraud, the place victims are tricked into making funds or sharing private data. This demographic, which ceaselessly makes use of social media and digital cost strategies, faces increased dangers in comparison with older age teams.
Amongst those that skilled fraud prior to now six months, 59% reported monetary losses, with 46% shedding $500 or much less and 13% shedding over $500. Many (85%) reported these incidents to their monetary establishments. Older Canadians (55+) have been extra prone to report circumstances the place no cash was taken however private information was stolen, whereas younger Canadians (18-34) have been extra prone to expertise precise financial loss.
To guard themselves, Canadians are taking a number of measures: 79% restrict on-line data sharing, 70% store solely on trusted websites, and 51% want native, in-person transactions for on-line purchases. The adoption of two-step authentication has elevated to 65% in 2024 from 50% in 2021. Nevertheless, weaknesses stay, notably in password administration. The variety of Canadians storing passwords insecurely (on smartphones, computer systems, or in notebooks) rose to 35%, with 19% utilizing the identical password throughout accounts. Younger Canadians are notably susceptible to those dangerous practices, with 41% storing passwords insecurely and 28% utilizing equivalent passwords for a number of accounts. Moreover, 12% of younger Canadians have shared private and banking particulars through e-mail or textual content.
