Has Your SIN Been Compromised?

April 05, 2010

Ottawa Journal (April 05 – April 09, 2010)
David Tilson, M.P. (Dufferin-Caledon)

If you have lost your wallet or it has been stolen from you, it can be immensely stressful, frustrating, and potentially expensive. The frustration can be compounded if your Social Insurance Number (SIN) card was in your wallet because of the growing problem of identity theft. If your SIN has been lost or stolen, there are several measures you can do to protect your SIN, to ensure you don't become a victim of identity theft or endure financial hardship.

Your SIN belongs to you and you alone. It is important to keep it private because if it falls into the wrong hands, it can be used in a fraudulent manner. It can be used to find out personal information about you and ultimately, invade your privacy. If your SIN is taken from you, it can used to access and receive government benefits, tax refunds, or bank credits in your name. If your information is revealed to unauthorized people, it can result in identity theft and other types of fraudulent activity. Furthermore, if someone uses your SIN to work illegally or to receive credit, it may cause you many difficult challenges and hardship. For example, it may result in higher personal taxes for income you didn't actually earn or you may be denied credit because the person who illegally obtained your SIN ruined your credit rating.
   
There are a number of things you can do to protect your SIN:

• Only provide your Social Insurance Number if you know that it is legally required.
• Contact Service Canada if you change your name, your citizenship status changes, information on your SIN record is incorrect or incomplete, or if there is a death in your family.
• Inform Service Canada if your SIN card is lost or if you suspect that your SIN is being wrongly used.
• Don't carry your SIN card with you unless you know you will have to show it that day, for example, when starting a new job. Store your card safely, for example, in a secure file cabinet at home or in a safety deposit box.
• Never use your SIN card as a piece of identification. Doing so puts your SIN and personal information at risk.
• Don't provide your SIN over the phone unless you make the call and you know with whom you are dealing.
• Never reply to e-mails that request personal information such as your SIN.
• Protect your personal information and your SIN. For example:

• shred all paper records containing personal information once you no longer need them
• use confidential passwords that contain a combination of upper and lower case characters, numbers, and symbols
• never use automatic login features that save user names and passwords on your computer
• use a personal firewall and anti-virus software on your computer system.

   
If your SIN has been lost or stolen or you suspect that your SIN is being used by someone else, you can take the following steps to prevent and reduce the negative effects by:

• Carefully reviewing your bank account, credit card, and other financial transaction statements. If anything concerns you, contact your financial institution.
• Monitoring your mail for any disruption in delivery. If you notice any irregularities (such as opened envelopes, missing financial statements, or documents) in your mail delivery, report them to Canada Post.
• Calling Canada’s two national credit bureaus. Ask for a free copy of your credit report and review it for any suspicious activity. You may also wish to see if your credit file should be flagged to indicate that your personal information has been put at risk and may be vulnerable to fraud.
• Reporting the theft of your SIN card to the police, if you suspect your SIN card is used fraudulently. Ask for the case reference number, the officer’s name, and telephone number.
• Contact PhoneBusters at 1-888-495-8501. PhoneBusters is a national anti-fraud call centre operated by the Ontario Provincial Police and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. They are able to provide advice and guidance on identity theft.
• Visit a Service Canada Centre and bring all the necessary documents with you proving fraud or misuse of your SIN. You should also bring an original identity document (your birth certificate or citizenship document). A Service Canada official will review your information and provide you with assistance and guidance.

 If you suspect someone is using your SIN to work, you should provide Service Canada a printout of all the employers who issued a T4 slip for your SIN over the past three years. This printout can be obtained from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) at 1-800-959-8281. Check for any employers for whom you have not worked. Service Canada will then contact them on your behalf. You should also provide a clear photograph of yourself for every employer you weren't employed by, as this will help Service Canada to confirm with the employer(s) that you didn't work for them. Lastly, you should also provide Service Canada with a list of every address where you resided over the last ten years.
   
If you suspect that someone is using your name to obtain credit, it is advised to gather proof that someone else has used your SIN by obtaining a copy of the application for credit filled in by someone else who used your SIN on the credit application. This application must show both your name and your SIN. It is also advised to obtain a letter from a creditor confirming that someone else used your name and SIN to apply for credit. This letter must include both your name and SIN and state that you are not responsible for any purchases made fraudulently using your information.
   
For more information on how to protect your SIN and what to do if you suspect or know your SIN has been compromised, please visit Service Canada's website at: www.servicecanada.gc.ca. By being aware of how to protect your SIN and what actions to take if you suspect someone else is using your SIN, you can better protect yourself against identity theft and hardship.