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Minimize your risk
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By managing your personal information carefully and sensibly, you can help guard against identity theft. We recommend a few simple precautions to keep your personal information safe.
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Do not carry extra credit cards, your Social Insurance card, birth certificate or passport with you unless needed.
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When you order new cheques, do not have them sent to your home. Pick them up at the bank instead. If stolen, your cheques can be altered and cashed by identity thieves.
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Never give out personal information over the phone unless YOU are making the call. Identity thieves may call, posing as banks or government agencies.
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Shred your receipts, credit card offers, bank statements, returned cheques, and sensitive information before throwing it away.
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Check with your employer, landlord, and others with access to your personal data to be sure that they are keeping your records safe.
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Order your Credit Profile to make sure it is accurate and sign up for Credit Monitoring to receive alerts by e-mail if there are any changes to your credit profile.
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Protect your Social Insurance Number with extra care. Disclose it only when it is absolutely necessary. Don’t have your Social Insurance Number printed on your cheques or any other personal documentation.
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Follow your billing cycles closely. A missing credit card bill could mean an identity thief has changed your billing address to his own.
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File away a list of all your account numbers--with expiration dates and telephone numbers.If your wallet is stolen, you will be able to quickly alert your creditors.
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When creating passwords & PINs, use a random mix of letters and numbers.To make it easier to remember, use the first letter of every word in a short phrase. For example - "You are the One for Me" becomes YAT1FM. Note - "one" becomes the number 1. Do not use information that may be easily discovered by identity thieves.
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