The following statistics and facts on mass marketing fraud come from data collected by the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre. Mass marketing fraud are scams perpetrated on a large scale using mass media such as telephone, Internet, and regular or electronic mail. They include but are not limited to:
• Prize lottery or sweepstakes fraud
• Nigerian scam or 419 fraud
• Employment/work from home fraud
• Advance fee loan fraud
• Bogus health product or cure fraud
• Emergency (any e-mail from someone claiming to be in some kind of trouble)
In 2010, 9,977 people reported being victims of fraud. That breaks down to: 831 victims a month or approximately 27 victims a day. Only 5 per cent of people who’ve been victims of fraud ever report it.
In 2010 Canadians reported losing almost 13 million dollars to mass marketing fraud in 2010. The RCMP's Commercial Crime Branch estimates that Canadian fraud losses total between $10 billion and $30 billion annually.
Canadians between the ages of 50-59 are the most targeted by mass marketing fraud operations. Canadian victims between the ages of 40-49 reported the highest dollar loss. Nearly 80 per cent of all mass marketing frauds in Canada involve organized crime groups. Fraud-related offences, such as credit and debit card fraud, are now thought to be more numerous and as profitable as drug-related offences in Canada
“Telephone / Facsimile” is reported as the most prevalent solicitation method used to solicit Canadian consumers. Western Union is the top reported payment method used to receive funds from Canadian victims.
Nigerian Scam Fraud
In 2010 the Canadian Anti Fraud Centre received 1,948 complaints about Nigerian or foreign money offer scam. The reported dollar loss was $2.6 million.
The Nigerian scam is also referred to as the 419 scam after a formerly relevant section of the Criminal Code of Nigeria. The Nigerian Scam is, according to reports, the third to fifth largest industry in Nigeria.
Identity Fraud Statistics
Last year, 18,146 Canadian reported being a victim of identity fraud. In total they lost almost 9.5 million dollars ($9,436,996)
According to the Canadian Anti-fraud centre Identity thieves are looking for the following information:
• full name
• date of birth
• Social Insurance Numbers
• full address
• mother’s maiden name
• username and password for online services
• driver's license number
• personal identification numbers (PIN)
• credit card information (numbers, expiry dates and the last three digits printed on the signature panel)
• bank account numbers
• signature
• passport number
Online Passwords
The most commonly used online password is “123456”, the second most common is “password."
For every 20 passwords you find, there is a good chance that one of the passwords will also be chosen by another user.
• Prize lottery or sweepstakes fraud
• Nigerian scam or 419 fraud
• Employment/work from home fraud
• Advance fee loan fraud
• Bogus health product or cure fraud
• Emergency (any e-mail from someone claiming to be in some kind of trouble)
In 2010, 9,977 people reported being victims of fraud. That breaks down to: 831 victims a month or approximately 27 victims a day. Only 5 per cent of people who’ve been victims of fraud ever report it.
In 2010 Canadians reported losing almost 13 million dollars to mass marketing fraud in 2010. The RCMP's Commercial Crime Branch estimates that Canadian fraud losses total between $10 billion and $30 billion annually.
Canadians between the ages of 50-59 are the most targeted by mass marketing fraud operations. Canadian victims between the ages of 40-49 reported the highest dollar loss. Nearly 80 per cent of all mass marketing frauds in Canada involve organized crime groups. Fraud-related offences, such as credit and debit card fraud, are now thought to be more numerous and as profitable as drug-related offences in Canada
“Telephone / Facsimile” is reported as the most prevalent solicitation method used to solicit Canadian consumers. Western Union is the top reported payment method used to receive funds from Canadian victims.
Nigerian Scam Fraud
In 2010 the Canadian Anti Fraud Centre received 1,948 complaints about Nigerian or foreign money offer scam. The reported dollar loss was $2.6 million.
The Nigerian scam is also referred to as the 419 scam after a formerly relevant section of the Criminal Code of Nigeria. The Nigerian Scam is, according to reports, the third to fifth largest industry in Nigeria.
Identity Fraud Statistics
Last year, 18,146 Canadian reported being a victim of identity fraud. In total they lost almost 9.5 million dollars ($9,436,996)
According to the Canadian Anti-fraud centre Identity thieves are looking for the following information:
• full name
• date of birth
• Social Insurance Numbers
• full address
• mother’s maiden name
• username and password for online services
• driver's license number
• personal identification numbers (PIN)
• credit card information (numbers, expiry dates and the last three digits printed on the signature panel)
• bank account numbers
• signature
• passport number
Online Passwords
The most commonly used online password is “123456”, the second most common is “password."
For every 20 passwords you find, there is a good chance that one of the passwords will also be chosen by another user.
