Following a 40 per cent increase in victim losses to scams last year, the OPP, RCMP and Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) are launching a fraud prevention campaign next week.
Authorities will raise awareness from Feb. 6 to 10 of the significant increase in scams, including the emergency-grandparent con that has bilked more than $9.2 million from citizens.
In total, the CAFC received fraud reports totalling $530 million in victim losses in 2022, up from $380 million in 2021.
The Anti-Fraud Centre says Ontario was the hardest hit by the scam that targets vulnerable seniors, as more than $5.4 million was reported lost to the scam.
They also note that only 5-10% victims of scam report it to the authorities.
To learn more about fraud prevention, visit antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca.