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Protect Yourself from Identity Theft

Theft of your identity constitutes someone using your personal information to take over your bank account, apply for a loan or credit card, buy a car, open a new bank account or take a vacation!Vital information such as your name, address, date of birth, mother's maiden name and social insurance number can be easily obtained through any of the following ways: your garbage or recycling bin (credit applications, insurance forms, tax information); replies to job ads (birth certificate, diploma, driver's license); and funeral notices in the newspaper (person's name is listed with deceased mother's maiden name).

Identity theft costs $2.5 billion a year to consumers, banks, credit card firms, stores and other businesses.
--The Council of Better Business Bureaus in Canada

Why Now?

Recent technological advances are the culprits for the increasing incidents of identity theft. When you chat, purchase something online or simply visit a website, crumbs of information are left for a data broker to pick up. Data brokers are people who are paid to search the Internet for your personal information.

Identity theft is growing exponentially and many blame the advent of electronic communications: the Internet.
--The Council of Better Business Bureaus in Canada

Sources: Royal Canadian Mounted Police | CBC News

How Can I Fight Identity Theft?

1. Social Insurance Number (SIN)
  • Leave your SIN card at home in a safe place. This number is the key to your identity.
  • Give your SIN only when absolutely necessary. If at all possible, substitute another number or piece of information for a SIN.
2. Credit Cards
  • Never give your credit card number over the telephone, through email or on voicemail unless you are absolutely sure who you are speaking to.
  • If your identification or credit cards are lost or stolen, notify your creditors immediately!
  • Obtain a credit card that covers you for identity fraud to ensure you will not be taking on an identity criminal's debt.
  • Allow your children to use your credit card online or over the phone only under your direct supervision.
3. Bills & Mail
  • Monitor your bills. If a bill does not arrive, be sure to check into it. It is possible that someone may have rerouted your mail to their address to obtain your personal information.
  • Shred or burn all personal and financial information.
  • Put your mail on hold at the post office if you are going on vacation so that it does not remain in your mailbox.
4. Internet Use
  • Think about using an alias in your email address rather than your actual name; this way, identity thieves will not know your name if they simply come across your email address.
  • Always use a password when logging into websites that contain your personal information.
5. Other
  • Consider obtaining your credit report on a yearly basis to ensure there has been no unauthorized activity.
  • Be very wary when keying in your ID codes for ATMs, telephones and debit terminals as would-be criminals may be nearby, watching to obtain your codes.
  • Before revealing personal information when filling out forms, be sure you have asked how the information will be stored, protected and used.
Source: Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada | The Madison Courier
There are 1.4 million more social insurance cards in circulation than there are people in Canada .
--Social Insurance Registry