A free conversation could blunt the scams that have cost more than $2.4 billion since 2022
Canadians reported more than $704m in fraud losses last year, with total reported losses since 2022 topping $2.4bn, according to Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre figures.
Investigators say one of the most effective defences costs nothing: a conversation.
In a TD survey, 62 percent said regular family conversations about scams would make them feel less vulnerable, yet only 23 percent said those conversations happen consistently.
Embarrassment widens the gap, with 28 percent of Canadians overall, and 52 percent of Gen Z, saying they would feel too embarrassed to share their own fraud experiences.
TD's vice president of fraud management said open conversation about fraud reduces stigma and helps Canadians catch scams sooner.
"Sharing experiences and tips with people you trust" is one way to stay a step ahead, the executive said.
Recent cases show why a second voice matters.
Back in March, CBC News reported that a Vancouver woman lost more than $37,000 in an emerging tuition scam that ran stolen credit cards through a private university.
She kept approving the transactions until her husband, listening on speaker phone when the fraudsters called back, urged her to hang up, the broadcaster reported.
The emotional pressure can be severe, and it often reaches retirement savings.
A Toronto police fraud investigator told CBC News that one victim, convinced he faced a money-laundering accusation, emptied his own account, his mother's account and his home equity line of credit before anyone stepped in.
Grandparent scams have hit seniors hardest: a Canadian man drew more than 15 years in a US prison and was ordered to repay more than US$700,000 for coordinating money pickups from elderly victims across the border.
Impersonation scams keep working for the same reason, because targets act before they verify.
Fraudsters posing as police, and in one case spoofing a Halifax force's real phone number, have pushed victims to move money fast, CBC News reported.
The fix rarely changes, the Canadian Cyber Threat Exchange told the broadcaster: "Stop, check and talk."
Authorities have started going after the tools.
In late April, the federal government proposed banning crypto ATMs in its Spring Economic Update 2026, calling the machines a "primary method for scammers to defraud victims."
Canada hosts roughly 4,000 of them, the highest concentration per capita globally, and the proposal would make operating one a criminal offence, though it has not yet become law.
TD encouraged Canadians to make fraud prevention a routine conversation, urging people to pause, verify unsolicited requests, avoid unknown links, and know what a bank will never ask.
Anyone already caught should contact their financial institution immediately and report it to authorities, the bank said, since acting quickly can limit losses and may protect others.
