Nearly nine in 10 Canadians surveyed said they are confident they can identify fraud, even though more than half admitted to online behaviours that could leave them vulnerable to scams, according to a new poll.
“Confidence can be a double-edged sword when it comes to fraud prevention,” Vice President for fraud management at TD Bank Tarundeep Dhot said.
“Overconfidence can sometimes lead to quick decisions or overlooked warning signs that scammers rely on. Bad actors are counting on people moving quickly or assuming they’re not at risk.”
Forty-one percent said they have never consulted information about fraud prevention.
The survey also asked participants whether they or someone else they know have been the victim of fraud, to which nearly one-quarter (24 percent) responded positively.
Among business owners who answered the survey, the number of victims was even higher, at 46 percent. A similar number of business owners expressed confidence in spotting fraud, at 88 percent compared with 89 percent of individual respondents.
Where businesses differed was in how proactive they are in looking for fraud, with 81 percent saying they regularly review accounts for suspicious activity. A total of 76 percent said they have safeguards in place to protect against fraudulent activity, and 75 percent said their employees are also trained to look for it.
The survey also identified respondents by age group. It found that 67 percent of Gen Z Canadians consult resources or seek advice on fraud prevention at least once a year, and 52 percent help family members who are targeted by scams.
However, 65 percent of Gen Z respondents also admitted to engaging in online behaviors that put them at increased risk of fraud—much greater than the national average of 52 percent.
“Younger Canadians are often seen as tech savvy, and many are taking on the role of helping others navigate fraud risks,” Dhot said. “But digital literacy alone isn’t enough.”
TD advised Canadians to reduce their risk of fraud by slowing down, questioning unexpected requests, and verifying information before taking action, even when messages or calls appear legitimate.
Key safety habits include avoiding sensitive accounts on public Wi-Fi, not clicking unknown links or downloading files from unknown source, and confirming who you are dealing with before sharing personal information, it said. The bank also recommended families regularly discuss scams and suspicious messages to build awareness.
The survey was conducted from Dec. 18, 2025, to Jan. 5, 2026, and surveyed a nationally representative sample of 1,517 Canadian adults and 262 Canadian business owners. The results were weighted by age, gender, region and, in Quebec, language, to reflect Canadian Census demographics. The bank said a probability sample of 1,500 respondents has an estimated margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points.
