Nearly Half Of Canadians Are Worried About Being Scammed & These Tips Could Help Protect You

If you're increasingly worried about scams in Canada, you're not alone.

According to a new survey, more Canadians are worried about becoming a victim of cybercrime in the coming year.

Conducted by RBC, the survey found that 47% of Canadians have these concerns, especially as cyber criminals get more sophisticated.

The study also found that 71% of Canadians are aware of the types of scams and cyber crimes that are out there. But that awareness begins to wane as newer, more sophisticated tricks are thought up by scammers.

While around 60% of Canadians are aware of malware, only around 30% were aware of pharming (redirected internet traffic to a fake website) and 28% of vishing (making fake voicemails or phone calls).

This makes them easier targets for such attacks.

The concern about cyber attacks also seems to increase with age.

A whopping 83% of Canadians over the age of 55 are worried about their personal information being illegally accessed while 76% worry that their emails or social media accounts will be hacked or they'll become a victim of online fraud.

So, to help your chances of not being on the business end of an online scam, there are a few strategies you can use in your daily life.

The first is to make sure you have unique and secure passwords for all of your important accounts like your banking.

You should also be wary of doing banking or other personal activity, like online shopping, when on a public wifi network. Even one you think is secure.

And, finally, be sure to trust your gut!

If an email, text, or phone call seems weird and is asking for personal information, there's a good chance it is.

You can always hang up, not respond, or ignore it and contact the organization or person it's claiming to come from to verify if it's real.

The government of Canada has a full breakdown of types of scams in Canada, how to verify if a call is real and what kind of information you should not share.

Stay safe, all!

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.