Protecting your good name

Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in North America. A 2005 Ispsos-Reid study indicated that 8 per cent of Canadian credit card users had been a victim of identity theft, with British Columbia higher at 12 per cent. One in four Canadians reported that they or someone they knew personally had been a victim of identity theft.

Stolen personal information can be used for anything from obtaining new credit cards, taking out loans, securing a mortgage to obtaining a passport. And apart from any financial losses, a typical victim of identity theft will spend months repairing the damage to their credit reputation.

According to security experts, criminal technical wizardry aside, many are simply asking to have their personal information stolen. Some common missteps include storing important financial information in your day planner or carrying SIN or other important identification cards in your wallet, both of which can be easily misplaced or stolen.

In fact, loss or stolen wallets, checkbooks or credit cards continue to be the primary source of data compromise, according to a recent US study by the Better Business Bureau and Javelin Strategy and Researc Further, the study found that 90 per cent of compromise took place through traditional offline channels, while almost half of all identity theft is perpetrated by friends, neighbors or someone otherwise known by the victim.

Some important steps you can take to safeguard your important financial information:

Treat sensitive information sensitively. Keep items containing personal information in a safe place both at home and in the office — and absolutely do not store important financial or personal information in your day planner. Having your schedule lost or stolen is upsetting enough, but imagine a thief assessing important names, phone numbers, credit card numbers, passport information and bank account numbers. Also, it is good practice to minimize the number of identification information and number of cards you carry.

Use caution when wiring money. According to the Federal Trade Commission, the percentage of Internet-related fraud complaints using wire transfers as the method of payment more than tripled between 2003-2005. Wire transfers are widely used in faux-charity, Nigerian, and lottery scams

Remember that banks and other financial institutions do not send e-mails to customers requesting records or confirmation of account information. Email remains the number one method identity thieves use to reach victims. Do not respond to any suspicious email, but delete immediately. If there is any doubt, contact the company by telephone to determine the e-mail’s legitimacy

Use and regularly update firewall and anti-virus protection

When responding to any email, ignore any Internet links provided and type in the full address instead

Be cautious with file sharing programs. When sharing software to download music, you may be inadvertently sharing more than MP3 files. It doesn’t take long for a potential identity thief to scan your entire hard drive and find tax returns, bank statements and other important documents. If sharing files online, it is important to specify which files you wish to share and which ones to keep private

Destroy – literally – your old computer. When discarding a computer, wiping a hard drive clean may not be enough. Some experts advise actually “smashing” the computer, rending it unusable

Do not give personal information over the phone unless you have initiated contact or know whom you’re dealing with. Telemarketing fraud is becoming more sophisticated and remains an effective method for identity theft

Regularly change pin numbers and computer passwords. And remember, when creating a password, avoid using easily available information like your mother’s maiden name or date of birth

Sign up for automatic payroll deposits. As much as possible reduce paper bills, statements and bills with online (paperless) versions

Give your Social Insurance Number only when absolutely necessary, and do not carry it with you

Guard your mail. Deposit outgoing mail in post office collection boxes or at your local post office. Incoming mail should be promptly removed from your mailbox, and if you move, ensure that mail is forwarded or re-routed

Let it rip. An identity thief has no aversion to sifting through your garbage or recycling bins. Be sure to tear or shred receipts, insurance forms, copies of credit applications or credit offers.

Detect unauthorized activity by reviewing all bank, credit card and billing statements weekly. When possible, use email based account “alerts to monitor transfers, payments, low balances, withdrawals, or to detect any out-of-pattern activity.

How do you know if the worst happens? According to PhoneBusters, the national anti-fraud call centre initiative of the Ontario Provincial Police and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, indicators that your identity may have been stolen include:

A creditor informs you that a credit application was received with your name and address for which you did not apply

You receive credit card statements or other bills in your name, for which you did not apply

You no longer receive credit card statements or realize that not all of your mail has been delivered

A collection agency informs you they are collecting for a defaulted account in your name and you never opened the account.

If you suspect or detect identity fraud, immediately contact PhoneBusters, the national anti-fraud call centre, at 1-888-495-8501 or online at www.phonebusters.com