Canada-based web platform Get App has issued a survey revealing that most Quebecers have experienced fraud while shopping online, and that 93% worry about its data security. According to the survery, one in three Quebecers who participated in Get App’s survey have experienced fraud on an online shopping website in the past decade, and the overwhelming majority are worried about the security of their data during online purchases.

The survey also found that the smartphone is the most popular device used to shop online (being the primary means for 38% of those surveyed), followed by the laptop and tablet. 73% download the online business’s app, while a little over half only download those of brands they use frequently. Regarding payments methods, the majority still trust well-known payment methods such as PayPal, though consumers are also starting to explore new methods such as Google Pay and Apple Pay.

Canada, like most countries, saw a jump in online shopping during the pandemic, with 82% of Canadians shopping online compared to 73% in 2018. Many were new to it, with 13% buying groceries online for the first time and 9% buying other physical goods for the first time. Broad tends in Canada’s payments A report from Payments Canada notes that in the economy at large, Canada has seen a decided shift away from physical forms of payment such as cash and cheques, towards digital and contactless payments.

79% of transactions conducted in 2020 were electronic, up slightly from 2019’s figure (77%). A new phenomenon observed in 2020 was the decline in card use. Card alternatives are increasingly being explored, from mobile payments or digital wallets (used by roughly 29% of Canadians) to gaming consoles or Internet of Things devices (used by 14%).

Solutions to make payments safer and sleeker In 2021, Canada introduced the Retail Payments Activity Act, by which the central bank supervised retail payment service providers, in order to ensure the security of payments. Canada is also undertaking extensive modernisation of payments, in the form of the Real-Time Rail (RTR) currently being developed by Payments Canada. Access will be open to both the member institutions of Payments Canada and, eventually, non-bank payment service providers.

This will allow Canadians- both businesses and consumers- to engage, 24/7/365, in irrevocable payments which are cleared and settled in a few seconds. Businesses’ cash flow management will be greatly facilitated by the instant nature of payments. Businesses can also use the RTR as a platform upon which payments products and services can be improved or developed.

The RTR’s design accommodates future changes to the system, such as electronic requests for payments. The rail is ISO20022-enabled; ISO20022 is an international standard which supports interoperability between payment systems because of common and data-rich standards. The RTR is due to be launched in mid-2023.

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