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Identity Theft: What it is and what you
can do about it
Every year, thousands of people are
victims of identity theft.
While recent developments in
telecommunications and computer
processing make it easier for companies
and consumers to reach each other, they
can also scatter your personal
information more widely, making life
easier for criminals.
Identity theft is the unauthorized
collection and use of your personal
information, usually for criminal
purposes.
Your name, date of birth, address,
credit card,
Social
Insurance Number
(SIN) and other personal identification
numbers can be used to open credit card
and bank accounts, redirect mail,
establish cellular phone service, rent
vehicles, equipment, or accommodation,
and even secure employment.
If this happens, you could be left with
the bills, charges, bad cheques, and
taxes.
How to fight identity theft
-
Minimize the risk. Be careful about
sharing personal information or
letting it circulate freely.
-
When you are asked to provide personal
information, ask how it will be used,
why it is needed, who will be sharing
it and how it will be safeguarded.
-
Give out no more than the minimum, and
carry the least possible with you.
-
Be particularly careful about your
SIN; it is an important key to your
identity, especially in credit reports
and computer databases.
-
Don't give your credit card number on
the telephone, by electronic mail, or
to a voice mailbox, unless you know
the person with whom you're
communicating or you initiated the
communication yourself, and you know
that the communication channel is
secure.
-
Take advantage of technologies that
enhance your security and privacy when
you use the Internet, such as digital
signatures, data encryption, and
"anonymizing" services.
-
Pay attention to your billing cycle.
If credit card or utility bills fail
to arrive, contact the companies to
ensure that they have not been
illicitly redirected.
-
Notify creditors immediately if your
identification or credit cards are
lost or stolen.
-
Access your credit report from a
credit reporting agency once a year to
ensure it's accurate and doesn't
include debts or activities you
haven't authorized or incurred.
-
Ask that your accounts require
passwords before any inquiries or
changes can be made, whenever
possible.
-
Choose difficult passwords – not
your mother's maiden name.
Memorize them, change them often.
Don't write them down and leave
them in your wallet, or some equally
obvious place.
-
Key in personal identification numbers
privately when you use direct purchase
terminals, bank machines, or
telephones.
-
Find out if your cardholder agreement
offers protection from credit card
fraud; you may be able to avoid taking
on the identity thief's debts.
-
Be careful what you throw out. Burn or
shred personal financial information
such as statements, credit card
offers, receipts, insurance forms,
etc. Insist that businesses you deal
with do the same.
Are you a victim of identity theft?
-
Report the crime to the police
immediately. Ask for a copy of the
police report so that you can provide
proof of the theft to the
organizations that you will have to
contact later.
-
Take steps to undo the damage. Avoid
"credit-repair" companies: there is
usually nothing they can do, and some
have been known to propose a
solution—establishing credit under a
new identity—that is itself
fraudulent.
-
Document the steps you take and the
expenses you incur to clear your name
and re-establish your credit.
-
Cancel your credit cards and get new
ones issued. Ask the creditors about
accounts tampered with or opened
fraudulently in your name.
-
Have your credit report annotated to
reflect the identity theft. Do a
follow-up check three months after to
ensure that someone has not tried to
use your identity again.
-
Close your bank accounts and open new
ones. Insist on password-only access
to them.
-
Get
new bank machine and telephone
calling cards, with new passwords or
personal identification numbers.
-
In the case of passport theft, advise
the
Passport
Office.Contact
Canada
Post
if you suspect that someone is
diverting your mail.
-
Advise your telephone, cable, and
utilities that someone using your name
could try to open new accounts
fraudulently.
-
Get a new driver's license.
If you suspect that someone has been
using your SIN to get a job, or that
your SIN has been compromised in some
other way, contact
Human
Resources Development Canada
at:
Social Insurance Registration
P.O. Box 7000
Bathurst, NB E2A 4T1
E-mail:
sin-nas@hrdc-drhc.gc.ca
To find out more about your privacy
rights, call the Office of the Privacy
Commissioner of Canada toll-free at
1-800-282-1376, or write:
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner
112 Kent Street
Ottawa, ON K1A 1H3
E-mail:
info@privcom.gc.ca
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