Same scam. 2 countries. Why Canadians don’t get their money back: CBC's Marketplace Cheat Sheet
The CBC's Marketplace rounds up the consumer and health news you need from the week.
The consumer news you may have missed this week
Bobby Hristova · CBC News
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Same scam. 2 countries. Why Canadians don’t get their money back
WATCH | Bank scammer confronted by CBC Marketplace:
Bank scammer confronted by CBC Marketplace
October 23|
Duration
2:01
David Common confronts a bank scammer who lures victims by pretending to be the fraud department at their financial institution.Two people described the same financial scam to the police and their banks over the past year. The only difference was where they lived — one in Canada, the other in the U.K.
And that determined what happened next.
Asif Mohammed lost $7,200 this spring and never got it back. Meanwhile, Samantha Bradshaw was out £11,000 (nearly $21,000 Cdn) but her financial institution reimbursed the money within days.
That's because British banks are required by law to make most of their customers whole when money is lost to a scam — often returning the sum within days of making a claim. In contrast, Canadian banks have no such legal obligation, leaving scam victims here largely unprotected.
As CBC’s Marketplace found out, it also means British banks are incentivized to crack down on fraudsters in a way Canadian banks are not.
Read our full investigation from David Common and Nelisha Vellani.
Toronto Crime Stoppers pauses program after CBC investigation reveals details of data leak
WATCH | More on the investigation:
Over a million Canadian tips leaked from Crime Stoppers database
October 21|
Duration
1:52
A CBC News investigation found more than a million tips submitted to Crime Stoppers in Canada over the past 25 years were exposed in a massive data breach. About half the leaked Canadian tips obtained by CBC contained personal information.Toronto Crime Stoppers is pausing its program effective immediately, said its chair, Sean Sportun, in a statement sent late Wednesday evening.
The news follows an exclusive CBC investigation from earlier that day revealing information from more than 1.5 million tips submitted to Canadian Crime Stoppers programs over the last 25 years was exposed in a massive data breach. It was the first time precise figures were made public showing the severity of the information exposed, as well as how many Canadian tipsters have been compromised.
Up until the investigation was published, the Canadian Crime Stoppers Association (CCSA) and individual chapters had not spoken out about the extent of the breach, only saying they awaited a detailed report from Navigate360, the U.S.-based third-party company that manages its data through platform P3.
Toronto Crime Stoppers now says it has removed the "Tip Submit" feature from its website and will no longer accept or process any new information intended for the program. It has also advised Navigate360 to immediately suspend the intake function for the Toronto Crime Stoppers chapter from its platform.
In the statement, the organization advised the public not to send tips by phone, online or through its app "until we have a safer way to protect you."
"People in Toronto have come to Toronto Crime Stoppers because we promised they could stay anonymous. This week’s reporting shows that for some of them, that promise was broken. We are deeply sorry," Sportun said in a statement.
The Toronto Police Service also announced in a statement Wednesday evening that it has "temporarily suspended its use of Crime Stoppers" until further review.
Read more from the CBC's Valérie Ouellet and Michelle Allan.
MPs moving to restrict gambling ads in Canada amid mounting harms
WATCH | Sports gambling ads are everywhere. There's a push to change that:
Sports gambling ads are everywhere. There’s a push to change that
October 22|
Duration
2:29
Federal MPs are moving forward with a bill to restrict sports betting ads in Canada. It comes as new data shows that the number of problem gamblers is on the rise in Ontario.For T.S., a 22-year-old Ontario man recovering from a gambling problem, widespread advertising for online casinos and betting during sports broadcasts is "frustrating."
"Imagine you're an alcoholic and there was a beer ad during every show you watched," he told CBC News.
His gambling started three years ago as a fun Friday night activity with friends, but it escalated.
One night last year he found himself locked inside a bathroom, losing it all — having bet away $14,000.
T.S., who CBC has agreed not to name, says he quickly sought treatment and hasn't gambled since. But during his spree, all those ads fuelled him to gamble more.
"It certainly … would trigger me to go back and place another bet."
Politicians in Ottawa are moving to curb the widespread advertising currently seen across sports broadcasts, social media and online video games.
The federal standing committee on Canadian heritage meets next week to vote on Bill S-211, a law that proposes to rein in the ads across the country, amid new findings of increased addiction and gambling-related suicides in Ontario.
A new analysis for CBC News shows Canadians continue to be bombarded with betting promotions during sports broadcasts.
The new analysis also confirms little has changed since a CBC Marketplace study in 2024 revealed viewers were bombarded with thousands of ads and product placements in five NHL games (up to three per minute).
Read more from the CBC’s Dave Seglins, Andreas Wesley and Saloni Bhugra.
Watch Marketplace’s 2024 investigation on how many gambling advertisements we see during sports games.
What else is going on?
Bank of Canada increasingly expected to raise interest rates this month
Would have significant impact on battered real estate market
BMO CEO says don't give AI agents your banking info
On Tuesday, RBC's CEO said his bank may block Meta's popular Muse AI assistant
Want to book with Air Canada by phone? That'll be an extra $30 please
Airline says fee brings it in line with other airlines, including WestJet
Young people want to know if they're neurodivergent. Here's what doctors say is going on
Social media contributing to noticeable spread of patients keen on neurodivergent labels, experts say
Marketplace needs your help
(David Abrahams/CBC, Shutterstock/Roxana Gonzalez)
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Bobby Hristova is an award-winning investigative reporter with CBC's Marketplace. He writes The Watchdog, Marketplace's weekly newsletter. He's passionate about investigative work and accountability journalism that drives change — and he believes your story can help others. He worked with CBC Hamilton from 2019 to 2024 and also worked with CBC Toronto's Enterprise Team.
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