The majority of Canadians feel like they’re being targeted more than ever by financial fraud, according to a survey by TD Bank Group.

In a survey released Tuesday, it found six-out-of-10 Canadians (62 per cent) say they’re being targeted by financial fraudsters and almost eight-in-10 (78 per cent) say they don’t have confidence in their ability to identify scams.

It also found almost half of respondents (47 per cent) think a higher cost of living will make them more vulnerable to financial fraud and scams.

"As Canadians report being targeted by a record number of financial fraud attempts, many can benefit from using the tools and resources available to protect themselves and their loved ones," Mohamed Manji, vice-president of Canadian fraud management at TD, said in the report.

"It's very important to exercise caution, especially at a time when fraudsters may take advantage of the economic challenges many Canadians are currently facing.”

TOP FINANCIAL SCAMS

When it comes to being targeted for financial scams, the most common method Canadians reported was email and text message fraud (72 per cent), followed by phone calls (66 per cent).

The report found less individuals are being targeted over social media, with only 26 per cent reporting cases of fraud on these platforms.

Canadians also said the biggest factor behind financial fraud targets are their age  (43 per cent), followed by loneliness (35 per cent), newcomers (34 per cent) and financial hardship (32 per cent).

STIGMA AROUND FALLING FOR FINANCIAL FRAUD

The report said there’s still a large stigma around falling victim to financial fraud.

Almost one-third (31 per cent) of Canadians said they wouldn’t tell someone if they fell for a scam.

Another report released by CPA Canada on Tuesday found younger Canadians are more likely to suffer from fraud, with 63 per cent of individuals aged 18 to 34 reporting that they’ve been taken advantage of by fraudsters at least once in their life.

The CPA survey said one of the big reasons behind this is younger Canadians’ online exposure. It found 78 per cent of respondents said they use online banking for their debit cards, while 72 per cent monitor their credit cards online.

“The more we're online, the more we're opening ourselves up to smart scammers, so extra diligence is required,” Doretta Thompson, financial literacy leader at CPA Canada, said in the release.