If you’re feeling overwhelmed by phishing emails, too-good-to-be-true offers on social media, and scam calls and text messages, you're not alone.
According to a recent survey conducted on behalf of TD, nearly half of all respondents said they encounter scams weekly or even daily.
With the proliferation of artificial intelligence, more than 80% of those surveyed said fraud attempts are becoming harder to spot and about 75% said AI advancements make them feel more vulnerable to financial fraud.
I won't deny it. The threats are real. In 2025, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre received more than 112,000 reports of fraud, with more than $704 million in reported losses. The actual numbers are likely higher because many frauds and scams go unreported.
Fraud Prevention Month is drawing to a close. But protecting yourself from fraud shouldn’t end on March 31.
Fraud prevention should be a 365, 24/7 endeavour. Teams across the financial services industry work to help protect and educate their clients—and all Canadians—from becoming victims of fraud.
But to put up an even stronger defense, it's incumbent on all of us to continue educating ourselves about the many frauds and scams proliferating today. We must be aware of what fraud and scam attempts look like, and importantly, learn the steps we can take to help shield ourselves and our loved ones.
Know that anyone, irrespective of age, demographics or financial literacy can fall victim to fraud. While it might feel embarrassing or shameful to fall for a scam, talking to someone you trust about what happened may help.
Even the most tech-savvy among us can slip up, especially when we click before we think or let emotions cloud our judgement. Many fraud and scam attempts prey on our innate human vulnerabilities by conveying a sense of urgency, such as an item requiring immediate attention, a limited-time offer, or the final pair of tickets to a sold-out show.
My number one piece of advice is to take a beat before clicking on a link, providing personal or banking information to an unsolicited caller, or making a purchase online outside of a verified major retailer. Pause and think about the fraud prevention tips below to help stop a potential scam in its tracks.
- Never share passwords or PINs. Don't reuse passwords and try to create passwords that are not easily guessable. Along with keeping your passwords and PINs private, avoid entering passwords on shared and public devices.
- Consider making a family identity password. Fraud and scams involving AI-generated deepfakes and AI voice cloning are on the rise. With these tools, bad actors can mimic someone else’s voice or appearance in calls, images, and videos. If you get a call from a family member that feels off, ask for the password before proceeding. Try to make the password hard to guess and devoid of readily accessible information about you or your family.
- Be cautious with unknown emails (phishing) and text messages (smishing). Carefully evaluate emails and messages from senders not known to you, especially those claiming there's a problem with your account, your payment information, or a delivery. Avoid opening attachments and clicking on links.
- Look out for red flags in emails and text messages. Be mindful of spelling and grammar errors, awkward phrasing, colours and images that look off, and mistakes in email addresses purporting to be from legitimate sources (such as additional or missing letters or unfamiliar URLs).
- Don't share one-time passcodes (OTPs). Unless you initiate the call, TD will never ask for your PIN, OTP, or passwords. TD will never ask for remote access to your account.
- Don't be afraid to hang up and call back. If a caller says they’re from your bank, law enforcement, or a government agency, such as the CRA, hang up. Do not call the same number to verify if they’re legitimate. Find the real contact number from a verified source, such as the number on back of your bank access card or your local law enforcement’s non-emergency line.
- Resist the impulse to act quickly: Scammers will often rush you into making urgent decisions, so call or message someone you trust, like a loved one or family member, before making any financial decision, and do your own research as well.
- Be wary of too-good-to-be-true offers and opportunities. Investment opportunities that promise a high return with minimal risk can often be a scam. So can high-ticket items with astonishingly low prices. Approach these situations with suspicion and take your time to research sources, including researching a business or online platform, or checking an individual's professional license registration, before making a financial decision.
If you think you're a victim of a financial fraud or a scam, contact your financial institution. You should also report the fraud to your local police department and to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre. All three can share resources and provide you with guidance on next steps.
Together, we can help make every month Fraud Prevention Month and keep ourselves and our loved ones protected against fraud.
Fraud doesn’t take a break—and neither should fraud prevention.
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