Fact-checking viral Tiktok video on most dangerous Canadian cities

A Greater Sudbury sign is pictured in this undated photo. (File)

A video on TikTok falsely claims Sudbury, Ont., is one of 'Canada's Top 5 Most Dangerous Cities,' but where did the data come from and what do the crime statistics actually say?

Content on social media is not scrutizined, so CTV News has done the fact checking for you.

ABOUT THE VIDEO

The 30-second video posted by an account called freshdailyca acquired more than 1.5 million views, more than 65,800 likes and more than 4,800 comments in one day. It was posted Oct. 11.

While the information in the video is not attributed, it appears to be based off data from a website called Numbeo. It is a Serbian crowd-sourced database that is based "on surveys from visitors," similar to Wikipedia, rather than data from government sources. It has user-generated data on perceived cost of living and quality of life.

WHAT THE VIDEO SAYS

"Canada's most dangerous cities have been ranked and you'll be shocked at the list," the woman in the video said.

She goes on to list the alleged top five by crime index. The figures stated in the video and the Numbeo website at time of publication vary slightly by up to one point:

1. Surrey, B.C.                      63.97
2. Lethbridge, Alta.               63.34
3. Red Deer, Alta.                 62.64
4. Kelowna, B.C.                  62.40
5. Sudbury, Ont.                   60.26

WHAT IS A CRIME INDEX?

Statistics Canada compiles crime severity index (CSI) rates for police-reported crimes each year for 35 census metropolitan areas (CMA) from around the country, including Greater Sudbury. The number includes all criminal code violations -- including traffic, drug and all federal statutes -- and is based on their seriousness and actual sentences handed down

"A CMA must have a total population of at least 100,000 of which 50,000 or more must live in the core," Statistics Canada said.

The CSI "enables Canadians to track changes in the severity of police-reported crime from year to year."

HOW DOES SUDBURY COMPARE?

Here's the five Canadian cities with highest CSIs in 2021 are:

1. Lethbridge           128.7
2. Kelowna              122.3
3. Winnipeg             113.6
4. Moncton              113.4
5. Regina                110.9

Greater Sudbury's CSI for 2021 is listed as 84.4. and is actually No. 9 on the Statistics Canada CMA list, behind Saskatoon, Thunder Bay and Edmonton.

The country's average crime severity index for 2021 is 73.7, a drop of -0.3 per cent over the previous year. So, Sudbury is trending higher than the national crime average.

However, when it comes to the violent crime severity index, Greater Sudbury ranks higher after steadily increasing from 76.9 to 127.15 over the last five years. The national average is 92.5

Here is a look at the violent crime severity index for some cities:

• Thunder Bay         176.30
• Red Deer              175.65
• Winnipeg              159.62
• Regina                 141.30
• Greater Sudbury  127.15
• Saskatoon            121.44
• Lethbridge            114.25
• Kelowna               110.76
• Edmonton            109.98
• Moncton                 97.95
• Surrey                     85.23
• Calgary                   82.74
• Montreal                  82.04
• Vancouver               79.00     
• Toronto                    65.01

When it comes to violent crime severity index, provincial CSI rates are:

• Alberta                 101.36
• B.C.                       92.86
• Manitoba             126.92
• New Brunswick     88.48
• Newfoundland       75.50
• N.W.T.                  391.27
• Nova Scotia           71.60
• Nunavut               384.09
• Ontario                   56.21
• P.E.I.                      56.95    
• Quebec                  54.30
• Saskatchewan     146.76
• Yukon                   213.26

Find the full list here.

WHAT ABOUT SURREY AND RED DEER?

Statistics Canada compiles the crime data for both Red Deer, Alta., and Surrey, B.C., from the Royal Mounted Police.

In 2021, Surrey's population was 568,322 and its CSI was 85.98 – higher than both the national average and Greater Sudbury.

The population in Red Deer in 2021 was 100,844 and its CSI was 176.39.