‘Anyone could fall victim to these traps’: Survey shows Canadians are ‘fed up’ dealing with scams on a daily basis

Many fraudulent texts and emails used to be easy to spot, but with the advent of 'AI' some scams can now look like the real thing. Pat Foran has more.

March is Fraud Prevention Month, a time when Canadians are encouraged to be extra cautious and vigilant, to avoid becoming victims to scams.

Fraudulent texts and emails used to be easy to spot, however, with the advent of Artificial Intelligence (AI), some scams can now look like the real thing.

• READ MORE: Toronto police warn about rise of scams using AI

For some Canadians, they say they are getting “fed up” with having to deal with scams on a daily basis and are having “fraud fatigue,” but are still worried they could accidentally click on something unsafe.

According to a new survey conducted by RBC, 81 per cent of Canadians feel there is a new scam to watch out for almost every week, while 83 per cent said its safest to assume any unexpected texts, emails or phone calls are a scam.

Equifax Canada also issued a new survey, stating 67 per cent of Canadians worry about identity theft, with 64 per cent worried about impersonation and phishing scams, 59 per cent concerned over digital payment scams, and 46 per cent worried about investment and romance fraud.

“My message now is that the fraudsters are so good and so sophisticated that anyone could fall victim to these traps,” said Carl Davies, head of Fraud & Identity with Equifax Canada.

AI is also being used to create fake legal documents such as pay stubs, insurance forms, and drivers licences that look convincingly real.

“I would say in the last few years with the advent of artificial intelligence we have seen more and more people fall victim to this then they would have in the past,” said Davies.

The Equifax survey also found that 68 per cent of Canadians feel banks should implement stronger security measures to protect accounts and 59 per cent support mandatory fraud education in schools and public awareness campaigns.

According to the Credit Counselling Society, there is a real danger if people let down their guard and give out personal information. It can lead to identity theft and there are no guarantees if someone gets scammed they’ll get their money back.

“People are tired of getting all the messages and these phone calls relating to scams and I think what is happened is that it’s slowly wearing people down,” said Mark Kalinowski, financial educator with the Credit Counselling Society.

“Really, really be cautious about giving any personal information, dates of birth, social insurance numbers, any little bit of information could lead you down a road to trouble.”

28 per cent of Canadians who were asked said they find scams a “manageable annoyance,” however, 16 per cent said constantly dealing with fraud makes them “tired and anxious” and they worry they could make a mistake and get caught in a scam.