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Capco has published a survey showing widespread concern among Canadian consumers about payment fraud and deepfake threats as Canada prepares to introduce its Real-Time Rail payments system.
The survey of 1,000 Canadian adults found that 78% of respondents are concerned about the effect of deepfake technology on voice biometrics and facial identification. More than half (52%) said they had not received, or could not remember receiving, guidance from their financial institution on the deepfake threat and ways to reduce the risk.
That share rose to 60% among people aged 55 to 65, compared with 48% of those aged 25 to 35, pointing to a gap between concern over emerging fraud methods and communication from banks and other payment providers.
Across the broader fraud landscape, 91% of respondents said they worry that their online data could be used to make impersonation easier or reveal answers to security questions. Card or card data theft and identity theft were each cited by 45% as top concerns, followed by account takeover at 41%.
More than a third of those surveyed (36%) said they had been targeted by payment fraud in the previous two years. Among that group, 37% said they noticed a purchase they did not make, 32% identified a phishing attempt, and 20% experienced attempted card or card data theft.
Security concerns
The survey also examined what consumers want from financial institutions that offer payment services. Security was the most frequently cited factor at 60%, while 46% selected advanced fraud protection.
Other factors included customer service quality and responsiveness (39%), transaction speed and reliability (36%), and accessibility, such as round-the-clock support (36%). Brand reputation was selected by 31%, while 29% pointed to ease of use and convenience.
When asked how they balance security and convenience, 40% said security was their absolute priority. Another 31% said they put security first but still wanted decent levels of convenience, while 26% wanted a balance between the two. Just 4% said convenience came first.
At the same time, some common security measures were seen as burdensome. A third of respondents said complex passwords were frustrating or inconvenient, while 27% said the same about receiving security codes, such as those used in multi-factor authentication.
It noted that 23% of respondents cited challenge or security questions as frustrating. Mobile or email notifications of account activity were seen as inconvenient by 17%.
Fraud patterns
Beyond card theft, identity theft, and account takeover, respondents identified several other fraud risks. Purchases they did not make concerned 38%, phishing 27%, unauthorised transfer payments 24%, and impersonation or social engineering 17%.
The findings come as the Canadian payments market moves towards instant account-to-account transfers through the Real-Time Rail system. Real-time payment infrastructure can reduce delays for consumers and businesses, but it also narrows the window to detect and stop fraudulent transactions before funds move.
Despite these concerns, trust in financial institutions appears relatively strong. Most respondents said they were either somewhat confident (52%) or very confident (33%) that their primary financial institution would protect them from payment fraud.
Gaelan Woolham, Partner and Canada Head of Financial Crime, Risk, Regulation & Finance at Capco, commented on the findings.
"Payment fraud has become increasingly globalized, industrialized and technology-enabled, making it one of the most significant challenges facing Canadian consumers and the country's payments ecosystem. As Canada prepares for the launch of the RTR, fraud prevention will remain a top strategic priority across the industry. To stay ahead of evolving fraud tactics, organizations must be clear on emerging threats, customer concerns, experiences and expectations - and be ready to leverage advanced technologies, enterprise data and AI capabilities to prevent and respond to fraud in real time," Woolham said.
A second executive at the consultancy said firms should review fraud controls across the customer journey rather than focus only on back-end monitoring.
"The latest AI technologies are already showing their value when it comes to improving detection rates, identifying risk signals across operational, functional and data silos, and enabling accelerated, near real-time prevention. In addition to deploying AI, institutions should reappraise all components of their fraud prevention strategy from customer onboarding and education to collections and disputes. Customer education, for example, must become more actionable and be brought closer to the potentially insecure activity using mechanisms such as just-in-time messaging," said Harley Wonder, Managing Principal, Canada Financial Crime, Risk, Regulation & Finance at Capco.