Fraud isn’t going away – here’s how you can protect yourself

You’ve probably received a phone call that looked like it was coming from a reputable institution, but when you pick up you quickly realize something sounds off. Financial scams are becoming more sophisticated, and scammers are even selling their methods online to other fraudsters. These phone calls, phishing emails or questionable text messages target Canadians at every age.  

In this episode, we’re joined by Aaron McAllister, Vice President of Fraud Threat Management at Scotiabank and Chris Lynam, the Director General of the National Cybercrime Coordination Centre and the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. They explain what the latest scam trends look like and the various ways Canadians can protect themselves.

You can report cybercrime and fraud online at https://reportcyberandfraud.canada.ca/. For more information on the latest scams, visit Scotiabank.com/security.

For legal disclosures, please visit http://bit.ly/socialdisclaim and www.gbm.scotiabank.com/disclosures

Key moments this episode:

1:48 – An intro to Chris' work combatting fraud with the RCMP
2:45 – The scale of fraud in Canada according to recent data
4:02 – Why fraud seems to have grown so much
4:42 – Chris describes the prominent scams targeting Canadians in 2025
9:08 – Common scams Aaron has seen from his role at Scotiabank
10:25 – How scams target people of all ages
11:15 – The newest methods fraudsters are using, such as AI and deepfake videos
14:14 – Law enforcement's main challenges addressing fraud
16:28 – What Scotiabank and other financial institutions can do to combat fraud
17:27 – How the Maple Disruption operation brought together organizations to fight fraud
18:56 – The importance of education and Scotiabank's partnerships with other organizations
20:24 – What Canada can learn from other jurisdictions
21:36 – How a multipronged approach took down LabHost
25:08 – The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre's revamped online report portal
27:49 – Aaron's tips for preventing scams
29:30 – How to reach seniors with fraud awareness content
30:04 – Chris' tips for preventing scams
33:21 – Why early disruption is key and more tips from Aaron
34:39 – How a 'safe word' can protect families
35:19 – Where you can find Scotiabank's latest resources on fraud
35:40 – Summarizing tips and the importance of talking about fraud