FRANCAIS

July 06, 2005

Manitobans are invited to participate in public consultations to help address identity theft, Finance Minister Greg Selinger, minister responsible for consumer and corporate affairs, announced today.

"Identity theft is increasing across the continent. In 2003, about 900,000 Canadians were victims," said Selinger. "Working with the federal government and other jurisdictions, we are committed to evaluating legislation needed to help citizens avoid the consequences of having their private information stolen."

Identify theft has been recognized as a serious consumer concern. Victims can be left with poor credit ratings and money losses if private information is stolen and used for illegal activities such as fraud.

The Consumer Measures Committee is holding public consultations on identity theft until Sept. 15. More information about identity theft and the consultation paper Working Together to Prevent Identity Theft is available at http://www.cmcweb.ca or by asking the Consumers’ Bureau for a copy of the paper at 945-3800 or toll-free at 1-800-782-0067.

The public is invited to send comments online to info@cmcweb.ca, via fax to 613-952-6927 or to the Consumer Measures Committee.

The Consumer Measures Committee is a forum of federal, provincial and territorial representatives who are working to eliminate barriers to trade between the provinces and to improve the marketplace for Canadian consumers.

In January 2004, ministers responsible for consumer affairs recognized identity theft as a national concern. Since that time, identity theft programs for consumers and businesses have been established and a ID theft prevention kit has been developed for businesses.

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