Thousands of Canadians fall victim to fraud every year. In 2019, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) received 46,317 reports of fraud from Canadians, where 19,285 were victims with a total reported loss of $98M.
“Most people don’t think that they would fall victim to fraud, but fraudsters are using increasingly sophisticated methods to target people and the impact can be devastating,” said Sgt. Guy Paul Larocque, acting officer in charge of the CAFC. “Retirement savings, homes, businesses and, in some cases, lives have all been lost to fraud.”
One of the RCMP’s initiatives to track fraud is the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre which is a joint partnership between the Competition Bureau, the Ontario Provincial Police and the RCMP.
The CAFC is Canada’s central repository for data, intelligence and resource material on mass marketing fraud. It collects victim evidence, statistics and documentation and provides this information to law enforcement agencies.
In an effort to help more effectively combat mass marketing fraud, the CAFC has developed partnerships in the public and private sectors. For example, by working with telephone companies, email service providers, financial institutions and credit card companies, the CAFC has been successful in deterring communications between fraudsters and potential victims. In some cases, they’ve even had success in blocking the receipt and laundering of victims’ funds.
“Law enforcement and partners work tirelessly to stop fraud from happening and to conclude ongoing investigations, however, prevention and awareness remains one of the key tools to stopping fraud,” said Sgt. Guy Paul Larocque. “We ask that you do the following: recognize, reject, and report fraud.”
This Fraud Prevention Month, RCMP want everyone to take time to further educate themselves on how to recognize different types of fraud, learn how to report it, and share this information with your family and friends.
