Security

Increasing awareness about identity theft is an important issue in today's rapidly changing world. We want to provide you with a general overview about identity theft, helpful tips and practical information to help you detect and prevent identity theft. This tip sheet identifies key ways to reduce your risk of becoming a victim of identity theft.

What is identity theft?
How does identity theft work?
What can I do to protect myself?
How do you know if you might be a victim?
What should you do if you are or may be a victim?
Where can I get help or more information?

What is identity theft?

Identity theft occurs when someone uses your personal information without your knowledge or consent to commit a crime, such as fraud or theft.

How does identity theft work?

Identity thieves steal key pieces of your personal information and use it to impersonate you and commit crimes in your name. In addition to names, addresses and phone numbers, thieves look for social insurance numbers, driver's licence numbers, credit card and banking information, bank cards, calling cards, birth certificates and passports. They may physically steal important documents, or they may find out your personal information in other ways, without your knowledge. Once they steal the information, they may use stolen identities to conduct spending sprees, open new bank accounts, divert mail, or apply for loans, credit cards and social benefits.

What can I do to protect myself?

Be careful and aware of sharing personal information

• Minimize the risk. Be careful about sharing personal information.

• When you are asked to provide personal information, ask how it will be used, why it is needed, whom it will be shared with and how it will be safeguarded.

• Be particularly careful about your Social Insurance Number (SIN); it is an important key to your identity, especially in credit reports and computer databases. Use other types of identification when possible (and when your SIN is not required by law).

• Only provide personal information on the phone or through the mail when you have initiated the contact or know with whom you are dealing.

• Only provide personal information over the Internet when you know that the communication channel is secure.

• If you receive a call from someone claiming to represent your credit card issuer or your bank and the caller asks for your credit card number, do not provide it. If the call is legitimate, the issuer will already know your credit card number.

• Never disclose your Personal Identification Number (PIN) to anyone. No one from a financial institution, the police or a merchant should ask for your PIN.

Use appropriate security measures

• Keep statements in a safe place - they contain sensitive and personal information.

• When selecting a PIN, always avoid the obvious - your name, telephone number or date of birth.

• Never write your PIN down or disclose the number to anyone.

• 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.

• Use your hand as a shield to prevent others from observing you entering your PIN to ensure privacy when conducting a transaction by Automated Banking Machine (ABM), debit, telephone or computer.

• Conduct your ABM transactions when and where you feel most secure.

• Guard your mail. Deposit outgoing mail in post office collection boxes or at your local post office. Promptly remove mail from your mailbox after delivery. Ensure mail is forwarded or re-routed if you move or change your mailing address.

• Take advantage of technologies that enhance your security and privacy when you use the Internet, such as digital signatures, data encryption, and "anonymizing" services.

• If you use the internet/Online Banking, ensure that you protect yourself by using an updated browser and by installing a personal firewall and up-to-date anti-virus software on your computer. Keep records safe and don't leave a paper trail.

• After completing an ABM or debit transaction, remember to take your card and receipts.

• Your statements contain valuable information about your finances. Be careful what you throw out. Shred documents containing personal financial information such as statements, credit card offers, copies of credit applications, receipts, insurance forms, etc.

• Keep items with personal information in a safe place. An identity thief may pick through your garbage or recycling bins. Be sure to tear or shred receipts, copies of credit applications, insurance forms, physician statements and credit offers.

Ensure accuracy of your records, statements and activities

• Check your financial statements as soon as they arrive to ensure all charges gathered are correct.

• Review your account statements, passbooks and online activity on a regular basis. Look for extra or missing transactions and report any discrepancies immediately and always within the time period required by your account agreement.

• 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.

• Access your credit report from a credit reporting agency (Equifax or Trans Union) once a year to ensure it's accurate and doesn't include debts or activities you haven't authorized or incurred.

• Always keep your own notes of all transactions, especially those conducted over the telephone or the Internet and store notes securely.

Guard your cards, cheques and ID

• Carry only the identification and credit cards you need when traveling, whether locally or abroad. Minimize the identification information and number of cards you carry.

• Don't carry your SIN card; leave it in a secure place.

• Your bank card is the key to your account(s). It is for your personal use only. Keep your card in a safe place and never lend it to anyone.

• Do not carry your cards in your chequebook.

• Never leave your bank cards, credit cards, cheques or identification unattended at work. The workplace is the number one place for thefts.

• Don't leave your bank cards, credit cards, cheques or identification in your car.

• If your chequebook is lost or stolen, immediately call your bank and inform them of the missing cheque numbers.

• Sign your credit cards in permanent ink as soon as you receive them.

• Make a list of all your cards and their numbers and store this list securely. Credit card numbers can be used to conduct transactions without the card present.

• When making a purchase, keep your cards in view at all times; ensure you take your card back as soon as a transaction swipe has been completed with your card.

• Do not sign a blank cheque or charge slip.

How do you know if you might be a victim?

• Your bank statement, online activity or passbook lists transactions that you haven't performed or authorized.

• A creditor informs you that an application for credit was received with your name and address, which you did not complete.

• You receive credit card statements or other bills in your name that do not belong to you.

• You no longer receive legitimate credit card or bank account statements or you notice that not all of your mail is delivered.

• A collection agency informs you they are collecting for a defaulted account established with your identity and you never opened the account.

• Your cheque book, passbook or credit card goes missing.

What should you do if you are or may be a victim?

• Notify creditors and financial institutions immediately if your bank cards, credit cards or identification are lost or stolen.

Consult Financial Institution(s)

• Discuss whether to close your bank accounts and open new ones.

• Ask your bank to replace your existing bank card with a new one and assign new PINs.

• Ask how to report new problems.

Consult Issuer(s)

• Discuss whether to cancel your credit cards and get new ones issued.

• Ask the creditors about accounts tampered with or opened fraudulently in your name.

• Notify your telephone, cable, and utilities companies that someone is or may be using your name to open new accounts fraudulently.

• If identification has been stolen, contact all issuers to have the ID coded as stolen. Alert Government Organizations

• If your SIN is lost or stolen, or if you suspect that someone has been using your SIN to get a job, call Human Resources Development Canada toll-free at 1-800-206-7218 and select option 3. Or, contact via mail at P.O. Box 7000 Bathurst, NB E2A 4T1.

• If your Driver's Licence is lost or stolen, contact your local driver and vehicle license issuing office.

• Contact Canada Post if you suspect that someone is diverting your mail.

• Consider whether you should contact the police.

Advise Credit Agencies

• Call Equifax toll-free at 1-877-323-2598.
• Call Trans Union toll-free at 1-877-525-3823.
• Call Experian toll-free at 1-888-826-1718.

Where can I get help or more information?

Fraud - recognize it, report it, stop it. To learn more or to report a fraud, you can contact the following:

• Phonebusters: 1-888-495-8501, www.phonebusters.com
  Call Phonebusters to report fraud. They are a national anti-fraud call center operated by law enforcement agencies such as the RCMP. They collect complaints and forward them to the appropriate law enforcement agencies.

• Competition Bureau: 1-800-348-5358, www.cb-bc.gc.ca

• RCMP: www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/scams-fraudes/index-eng.htm
  The RCMP website highlights the latest consumer scams and how you can deal with them.

• Reporting Economic Crime Online: www.recol.ca

• Canadian Council of Better Business Bureaus: www.ccbbb.ca