These are the biggest financial scams in Canada: Interac survey

A new Interac survey finds government impersonation is one of the biggest financial scams plaguing people across Canada.

Forty-two per cent of survey respondents say they’ve dealt with scammers pretending to be representatives of official government institutions.

That’s followed by 41 per cent facing phishing scams and 33 per cent indicating they have dealt with fake banking, credit card and online account scams.

The survey, which collected responses from 1,202 people online between Sept. 28 and Oct. 6, suggests 53 per cent of respondents believe being targeted by financial scams is a common occurrence in Canada. Four in 10 reported being concerned they could fall victim.

Rachel Jolicoeur, director of cyber market intelligence and financial crimes at Interac Corp., says people have to remember the criminals carrying out scams are professionals and opportunistic.

She encourages people to pay attention to these incidents, and stop, scrutinize and report.

The Canadian Press