Canadians lost $638 million to fraud in 2024, yet only around 5% to 10% of all potential cases are being reported, data from the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre shows. What’s more, financial fraud losses increased over the past four years, totalling more than $2 billion since 2021.
For brokers and cyber insurers, this data is an opportunity to educate consumers about their personal insurance options covering fraud, CAFC suggests.
In 2024, the top three most reported types of fraud were identity fraud, service fraud, and investment fraud, “all designed to get you to pay or give away sensitive information like your social insurance number, passwords or banking details,” CAFC writes in a press release.
The Top 3 reported frauds with the highest financial impact were investment frauds, spear phishing, and romance scams.
The CAFC received 108,878 reports of fraud in 2024, which included at least 34,621 victims. But given the low rate of reports in Canada, there could be anywhere between 173,000 and 346,000 victims of financial fraud in Canada in 2024.
The low rate of reports might be attributed, in some ways, to a lack of knowledge about personal insurance options.
While a standard home insurance policy may cover certain types of fraud, “it’s unlikely to cover the full cost of a cyber incident or identity theft,” CAFC says.
Cyber insurers are still working to increase uptake of personal cyber coverage options, which may cover social engineering, invoicing fraud, phishing scams, or privacy breaches, depending on their policy.
Plus, when a company has been cyber breached, they are obligated to tell their clients their data’s been leaked. But personal consumers may be more likely to eat the cost of the cyber scam.
Feature image by iStock.com/Nanzeeba Ibnat
