Symcor’s Essential Verify helped combat a new wave of counterfeit Canada Savings Bond (CSB) cheques — safeguarding clients and consumers against emerging fraud risks. 

The Challenge

A leading Canadian financial institution reported a sudden surge in counterfeit CSB cheques being deposited.

Unlike commercial cheques, CSB cheques are subject to a less rigid fund-hold policy — meaning funds are often released immediately upon deposit. While designed for customer convenience, this policy created a vulnerability that fraudsters exploited by depositing counterfeit cheques and withdrawing funds before detection, leading to unrecoverable losses.

Key challenges included:

• Advanced Counterfeiting: Readily available image-editing tools enabled criminals to replicate legitimate government cheques convincingly.

• Impact on Customer Experience: Increased cheque holds and investigations risked erosion of customer trust and satisfaction. 

The Solution

To address this emerging threat, Symcor’s fraud analytics team rapidly enhanced the Essential Verify solution — a batch fraud detection system that is designed to detect duplicate, suspicious government cheques, and account-related anomalies using 12 different fraud indicators.

Key initiatives included:

• Enhanced government cheque fraud logic to identify new fraud patterns.

• Targeted transit number validation for CSB cheques before clearing.

• Secure online portal to review suspicious alerts enabled faster investigations and action.

Business Outcomes

The impact was both immediate and measurable. Within the first three weeks of deployment, Essential Verify achieved a 100% detection rate for fraudulent CSB cheques — helping the client prevent significant financial losses while safeguarding customer confidence.

• 100% fraud detection rate for counterfeit CSB cheques.

• $1M+ in confirmed fraud prevented across COR.IQ Alliance members.

• Faster response times, allowing clients to review alerts and act within hours instead of days.

This success highlights how collaboration and shared intelligence across Canada’s financial ecosystem can outpace even the most sophisticated fraud attempts.

Verify High-Risk Cheque Deposits with Confidence

Essential Verify is powered by COR.IQ – one of Canada’s leading multi-bank fraud consortiums that detects and prevents fraud and financial crime. 

Backed by decades of expertise, it helps financial institutions reduce fraud losses, enhance operational efficiency, and stay ahead of emerging risks while maintaining compliance.

Discover how Essential Verify can help your financial organization detect more fraud, lower operational costs, and enhance customer experience — at scale.

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