Fearing fraud, Canadians are at risk of missing bill payments

According to a recent survey, more than one in five Canadians risk losing a bill payment by not responding to communications for fear of a scam.

“Concerns about fraud and cyber risk are affecting the payment behaviors of many Canadians, who hesitate to pay bills because they wonder whether they are legitimate or potentially fraudulent,” Payments Canada said in its study published Monday.

In general, 13% of Canadians surveyed have been victims of payment fraud in the past six months, but a third of them have difficulty distinguishing genuine from fake communications on the subject.

59% of victims of scams lost money at least once. 13% of these victims suffered losses of more than $500.

Unauthorized transactions (38%) and contact with imposters (34%) were the most common types of fraud.

Canadians surveyed admit they sometimes don't follow best practices when it comes to passwords, with 35% keeping their passwords on their smartphone, computer, emails or notebook and 19% using the same password for all their accounts.

The survey was conducted with Leger's online panel of 1,500 Canadians from February 26 to March 8, 2024.