Lost or Stolen Social Insurance Number (SIN) Card

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WHAT TO DO IF YOU SUSPECT IDENTITY THEFT

If you think you are the victim of identity theft, here’s a checklist of things you should do:

1.     Contact the police and file a complaint. When the police investigation is finished, ask for a copy of the police report. If it is still taking place, get the police case number.

2.     Immediately contact your local Human Resources Canada Centre (HRCC) for assistance or contact the SIN Call Centre at 1-800-206-7218 (E) or   1-800-808-6352 (F) and select option “3”. If you are calling from outside of Canada, the number is (506) 548-7961. This is a long distance call. You can find the HRCC closest to you in the “Our Offices” section of our website.

3.     Notify your bank and creditors immediately by phone and in writing.

4.     Report to Canada Post any irregularities that you have observed in the delivery of your mail (for example, opened envelopes, missing financial statements, promised documents not arriving).

5.     Contact the following two major credit agencies to inform them that your SIN and other personal information have been stolen:

Equifax	1-800-465-7166	http://www.equifax.ca
Trans-Union	1-800-663-9980 or 1-877-713-3393 for Quebec residents	http://www.tuc.ca

6.     Ask the credit agencies to note on your credit file that you are the victim of identity fraud; tell them to contact you directly before opening any new account or granting credit under your name.

7.     Ask the credit agencies for your credit report so you can pinpoint any false or incorrect information; request paper or electronic copies of credit applications where an impostor has used your SIN; pass this information to the police.

8.     If you can’t get credit bureau reports proving identity theft, ask the creditor for a letter that confirms that an impostor has used your SIN to try to get credit or has actually received credit fraudulently. The letter should state that you are not responsible for purchases made by someone using your SIN fraudulently. That’s proof that you will not be liable for the debt.

You should be aware that:

• Your Social Insurance Number record is protected under the Privacy Act and no individual or establishment, other than authorized government agencies, can access information from that record. (Note: Credit bureaus are not government agencies and cannot access your Social Insurance Number record.)
• If, in the future, another person uses your Social Insurance Number for employment purposes or to receive other taxable income, you will receive a Notice of Reassessment from the Canada Revenue Agency concerning undeclared earnings. This is an indication that your Social Insurance Number is being used fraudulently. Report this immediately to the nearest office of your local Human Resources Centre of Canada (HRCC).
• Social Development Canada cannot correct a credit file. You are responsible for reporting any discrepancies to your financial institution(s) and resolving them yourself.

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