Job scams: five times the losses in Canada, double the reports in Australia
Canadian job-scam losses rose from C$9.5 million in 2021 to C$48.9 million in 2024 — more than five times — while report counts fell. In Australia, Scamwatch job-scam reports rose 102.4% in 2025 and losses jumped 81.5%, from A$13.7 million to A$24.8 million, with the largest increases among people aged 25 to 34 and among First Nations, disabled and culturally diverse reporters.
- Year
- 2025
- Where
- Canada, Australia
- Outcome
- Ongoing
- Reported loss
- $33.2 million
- Victims
- 1,448
- Schemes
- Job and task scams, Pig butchering, Overpayment and fake cheque scams
- Last reviewed
- 2026-09-06
The facts, as recorded
- Canada 2021: 3,914 job-scam reports, 1,962 victims, C$9,497,546.
- Canada 2023: 2,889 reports, 2,245 victims, C$31,129,106.
- Canada 2024: 2,882 reports, 2,388 victims, C$48,896,117 — more than five times the 2021 figure.
- Canada 2025 to 30 September: 1,821 reports, 1,448 victims, C$46,366,097.
- Australia 2025: Scamwatch job and employment scam reports rose 102.4%; losses rose 81.5% from A$13.7m to A$24.8m.
- Almost 1,200 reports came from Australians aged 25 to 34, a 102.5% increase.
- Reports rose 76.3% from First Nations people, 114.0% from people with disability and 51.4% from culturally and linguistically diverse communities.
- Over A$19 million was reported lost to job scams where contact was made online; three times as many people reported a loss where contact was online rather than by other methods.
Why this case matters
Two national datasets, on opposite sides of the world, showing the same thing: job scams have stopped being a nuisance category.
Canada’s numbers are the more dramatic. Losses more than five-fold between 2021 and 2024, while reports actually fell. Loss per victim went from roughly C$4,800 to roughly C$20,500.
Australia’s grew on both measures — reports up 102.4%, losses up 81.5% — which suggests the scheme is still expanding into new populations there rather than concentrating.
Who is being reached
The Australian breakdown is unusually specific, and it does not match the stereotype of the fraud victim. The largest increases came from people aged 25 to 34 — almost 1,200 reports, up 102.5% — and from groups the National Anti-Scam Centre tracks as being at increased risk: First Nations people (up 76.3%), people with disability (up 114.0%), and culturally and linguistically diverse communities (up 51.4%).
This is a scam that finds people who need work. That is not a demographic accident; it is the targeting criterion.
The contact method matters
Over A$19 million of the Australian total came through online contact, and three times as many people reported a loss where contact was online compared with other channels. Job scams arrive by text and through social media, not through job boards with employer verification.
What it tells you about the scheme
The rise in loss per victim points at the mechanism. A job scam that simply takes an “equipment fee” costs a few hundred dollars. A task scam that requires the worker to deposit their own money to unlock commissions — the structure that now dominates — can run to tens of thousands, because the victim is funding their own supposed earnings.
There is a second harm the dollar figures do not capture. Some of these roles involve receiving and forwarding payments, which makes the worker a money mule and exposes them to criminal liability of their own. People who lost money can also end up losing their bank accounts.
Sources
- Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre Fraud Reporting System Dataset. Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre / RCMP. Accessed 2026-09-06. Supports: All Canadian report counts, victim counts and dollar figures, 2021 to 30 September 2025.
- Targeting scams: report of the National Anti-Scam Centre on scams data and activity 2025. National Anti-Scam Centre (ACCC), Australia. Accessed 2026-09-06. Supports: All Australian percentages, the A$13.7m to A$24.8m rise, the age and community breakdowns, and the online-contact finding.