Table 1
Characteristics of the most serious fraud in the five years preceding the survey, Canada, 2009


Table 1
Characteristics of the most serious fraud in the five years preceding the survey, Canada, 2009
Table summary
This table displays the results of Characteristics of the most serious fraud in the five years preceding the survey. The information is grouped by Characteristics of the most serious fraud (appearing as row headers), number (thousands), percent, 95% confidence interval, lower and upper, calculated using percent, dollars and number (thousands) units of measure (appearing as column headers).
Characteristics of the most serious fraud number (thousands) percent 95% confidence interval
Lower Upper
percent
How personal information was obtained
Information on the credit/debit/loyalty card was cloned or copied electronically 1,007 19.2 17.3 21.2
Something of yours was stolen 147 2.8 2.1 3.8
Victim provided their personal information 405 7.7 6.3 9.4
Unauthorized access (to an online account, email account, etc.) 472 9.0 7.6 10.7
Through a fraudulent change of address Note F: too unreliable to be published Note F: too unreliable to be published Note F: too unreliable to be published Note F: too unreliable to be published
After a data breach or leak 253 4.8 3.6 6.4
Other 303 5.8 4.6 7.2
Don’t know how the information was obtained 2,129 40.6 38.1 43.1
Personal information was not involved 483 9.2 7.7 10.9
How the victim found out about the fraud
Reviewing bank account or credit card statements or receipts 2,009 38.3 35.8 40.8
Victim's card was rejected at a retailer or victim wasturned down for credit 244 4.6 3.7 5.9
Checking credit rating 34 0.7 0.4 1.2
Hearing about a similar fraud on the news 170 3.2 2.4 4.4
Speaking to friends or family 171 3.3 2.3 4.5
A financial institution contacted the victim 1,614 30.8 28.5 33.2
An online payment company (e.g., PayPal) contacted the victim 50 1.0 0.6 1.6
A service provider or retailer contacted the victim 87 1.7 1.1 2.5
The police or another government agency contacted the victim 33 0.6 0.4 1.1
A collection agency contacted the victim 47 0.9 0.6 1.4
Other 752 14.3 12.6 16.3
Total value of lossesTable 1 Note 1
No losses 1,991 37.9 35.4 40.6
$1 to $249 854 16.3 14.4 18.4
$249 to $499 455 8.7 7.2 10.4
$500 to $999 593 11.3 9.7 13.1
$1,000 to $2,499 635 12.1 10.5 13.9
$2,500 to $9,999 468 8.9 7.5 10.5
$10,000 to $99,999 143 2.7 2.1 3.6
$100,000 or more 27 0.5 0.2 1.1
dollars
Average loss (in dollars)Table 1 Note 2 Note ...: not applicable 5,120 2,290 7,949
Median loss (in dollars)Table 1 Note 2 Note ...: not applicable 593 473 713
   number (thousands) percent
Reporting to authoritiesTable 1 Note 3
Police 552 10.5 9.0 12.3
Bank/credit card company 3,401 64.8 62.3 67.3
Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre 349 6.7 5.4 8.1
Consumer protection bureau 131 2.5 1.7 3.6
Other 364 6.9 5.8 8.3
Not reported 1,331 25.4 23.1 27.8
Time spent resolving the fraud
Less than an hour 1,646 31.4 29.1 33.9
More than an hour but less than a day 2,090 39.9 37.3 42.6
More than a day but less than a week 579 11.1 9.4 12.9
More than a week but less than a month 421 8.0 6.5 10.0
A month or longer 425 8.1 6.7 9.8
... not applicable
F too unreliable to be published
Note 1

The amounts do not include amounts for which the victim was reimbursed (e.g., by the bank, credit card company, or insurance).

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Note 2

Includes fraud that resulted in financial losses.

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Note 3

The response categories are not mutually exclusive.

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Note: Includes people who were victims of at least one fraud in the five years preceding the survey. If a person was a victim of more than one fraud during this period, the information refers to the most serious fraud experienced. The responses “Not stated” and “Don’t know” are included in the calculation of percentages, but are not presented unless they represent at least 5% of responses.
Source: Statistics Canada, General Social Survey on Canadians' safety, 2019.
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