Fraud prevention: Protect your brand from AI threats and productivity losses

Fraud continues to evolve in sophistication, particularly with the emergence of AI-powered scams and deepfake technology targeting Canadian businesses. While the impacts are evident from a financial perspective with losses of over $638 million in 2024 alone (RCMP, 2025), there are other hidden costs from fraud. With March marking Fraud Prevention Month, it is critical to examine the broader business implications on organizations and why fraud remains significantly underreported.

The ’hidden crime’ reality

Only 5-10% of fraud incidents are reported to authorities. This underreporting means the true scope of fraud’s impact on Canadian businesses remains largely invisible, making it a challenge for organizations to understand the full threat landscape and develop effective countermeasures.

While the financial impacts are likely significantly higher given the underreported figures, substantial knowledge about the existing fraudulent activities means that organizations can take meaningful proactive action to protect themselves, even if the true scale remains unknown.

Emerging fraud tactics

Criminals are leveraging AI-enabled technology to commit fraud, with known activities including:

• Deepfake AI-generated videos featuring public figures or executives endorsing fake investment opportunities or requesting fraudulent transactions
• Audio cloning that mimics trusted voices to authorize payments or access sensitive information
• AI-enhanced phishing scam emails that analyze social media profiles and company information to create highly convincing fraudulent communications
• Synthetic identity fraud that creates fictitious business profiles using a combination of real and fabricated data to establish fraudulent vendor relationships
  

To learn more about these and other common scams affecting Canadian consumers and business, visit our Consumer Centre.

The erosion of brand trust and reputation

Fraudsters continue to misrepresent Canadian brand names, images, and likenesses which erodes consumer trust. When consumers fall victim to brand impersonation scams, they may blame the legitimate business, not realizing they’ve encountered a criminal operation. Rebuilding this trust often requires significant investment in reputation management, re-engagement strategies, and consumer protection plans. Research shows that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) face particular challenges with  fraudulent payments (18%) and chargebacks (17%) (CNIB, 2024) according to recent industry analysis.

Productivity drain and resource diversion

As fraudulent activities multiply, organizations must redirect resources toward security and prevention mechanisms. Business leaders increasingly recognize fraud as a strategic risk (KPMG, 2025) requiring dedicated resources and processes. Marketers also face productivity losses from the complexities of ad fraud detection, which makes demonstrating authentic return on investment increasingly difficult. Additionally, teams spend valuable time responding to customer inquiries about suspicious communications, managing social media comments about impersonation attempts and coordinating with IT and legal departments on security incidents.

Campaign delays and increased review processes also impact operational efficiency. Teams may need to implement additional verification steps, pause active promotions when fraud is detected impersonating their brand and have budget allocations shift from growth initiatives to defensive measures.

The human capital challenge

Marketers are often the bridge between companies and their customers which places them in a unique position for managing brand misrepresentation and fraudulent activities. Managing the impacts of sophisticated fraud tactics, coupled with the pressure to maintain authentic customer relationships, can strain marketing budgets and talent. Teams may become more cautious, potentially affecting creative initiatives and innovative approaches that drive business growth.

Understanding these broader business impacts is the first step toward building effective defenses, but marketing professionals need actionable strategies to protect their brands and teams.

Build your defense strategy

Organizations can take the following proactive concrete steps to minimize exposure and contribute to better industry-wide intelligence for immediate protection and long-term fraud resilience.

As we navigate Fraud Prevention Month and beyond, it is important to remember that fraud’s underreported nature means its full impact on Canadian businesses remains largely hidden. The combination of direct financial losses, operational disruption and reputational damage creates challenges that extend throughout an organization. By understanding these business implications and implementing practical, ongoing protective measures, Canadian marketers can better protect their brands, teams, and customers from increasingly sophisticated threats. Most importantly, by encouraging reporting and staying informed about emerging fraud tactics, we can help bring this to the forefront where it can be more effectively addressed.

Report suspected fraud to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre by phone at 1-888-495-8501 or through their online fraud reporting tool.

Authors:

Irina Neagu | Public Affairs Specialist | CMA
Florentina Stancu-Soare | Director, Public and Regulatory Affairs | CMA