More Canadians are falling victim to investment and crypto scams, according to a new report from the Better Business Bureau (BBB) but the demographic losing the most money to con artists might be surprising.
Stefanie Lasuik of the BBB’s Central Canada branch told 680 CJOB people between the ages of 18 and 44 have dropped the most cash of any age group, losing an average of $2,500 to these kinds of financial scams.
“(It’s) a little bit of a surprise, often we think of younger Canadians as being more savvy — they grew up with technology and they typically understand it a little bit more than older Canadians,” Lasuik said.
“But we’re seeing when they do get scammed, they are losing high dollar amounts.”
Lasuik said improvements in scammer sophistication mean even those who think they’re adept at navigating the internet could get taken in. Caution is your friend when dealing with any potential scams, Lasuik added.
That sophistication includes the creation of realistic online forms and websites that appear to be legitimate investment opportunities.
Even people you think you know online, she said, could end up being scammers.
“We have scammers develop quite good relationships with their victims — they’ll spend months cultivating trust between themselves and their victims before they convince them to invest, for example.
“Or they try to convince them to be in a relationship with them and then ask for money later on.
“We know they’re becoming more sophisticated in their communication with people.”
Lasuik said if you or someone you know falls victim to a scam, you should report the incident to both police and the BBB.