The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre received 46,465 fraud reports from Canadian consumers and businesses in 2019 with a total reported loss of over $96 million.
Police have ranked the top scams which hit Canadians by dollar loss last year.
The top three are Spear Phishing at over $21.4 million, Romance scams comes in at number 2 at $18.3 million lost, and investment scams round out the podium with over $10.7 million in losses.
Top 10 frauds affecting Canadians ranked by dollar loss:
1. Spear Phishing $21,404,827.08
2. Romance $18,327,896.93
3. Investments $10,719,376.29
4. Extortion $9,233,115.11
5. Service $7,158,372.64
6. Prize $3,386,269.00
7. Bank Investigator $3,237,667.43
8. Sale of merchandise $2,686,904.31
9. Merchandise $2,593,007.04
10. Timeshare $2,477,196.56
Top tips to protect yourself:
· Create strong passwords for each of your accounts.
· Setup multi-factor authentication to make it more difficult for someone else to access your accounts.
· Update the privacy settings attached to your social network accounts.
· Be familiar with the terms of service and how payment methods work before using them. Look for a fraud protection policy.
· Never, under any circumstances, accept money and send money to a third party. You may, unknowingly, be participating in money laundering which is a criminal offence.
· Avoid reacting automatically. Take five minutes to ask additional questions and listen to your instincts. If something doesn’t seem right, ask someone else about it. Encourage others to take five minutes via social media by using #Take5 and tag @canantifraud.
· Remain current on frauds and protect others by sharing what you know. Tell two others and ask them to do the same. An unbroken chain of 25 people telling two would cover the entire population of Canada. If you are going to tell two people via social media, use #Tell2 and tag @canantifraud.
· Do not trust the information on your call display because it can easily be manipulated.
· Do not provide your personal or financial information on demand.
· Do not open an attachment or click a link in an unsolicited email or text message.
If you think you or someone you know has been a victim of fraud, please contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501 or report online at www.antifraudcentre.ca.
