Identity Theft: Canadian Passports Are A Target

Canadian Passports Are Being Stolen More And More OftenNew US passport requirements for Canadian and other western travelers apear to have led to a surge in the number of Canadian passports reported to heve been stolen annually, according to numbers released by Passport Canada.

Before 2006, about 25,000 passports were reportedly lost or stolen annually. That number jumped to almost 43,000 in 2006-07, coinciding with a surge in demand because of new U.S. passport requirements for Canadian and other western travellers. By 2008-09, it was 53,000. Now, it's hit 60,781.

But only in the latest annual report has Passport Canada broken down the combined "lost and stolen" total and publicly revealed the extent of the theft problem.

While Passport Canada tried to downplay the problem, the RCMP believe the matter is a national security concern because of the number of stolen passports that end up in the hands of criminals or terrorists.

A 2006 RCMP memo to then-public safety minister Stockwell Day said about 50,000 Canadian passports lost or stolen in the four previous years were suspected of falling into the hands of criminals or terrorists.

A primary concern is identity theft, one of the fastest-growing crimes in the world. In Canada, identity theft is estimated to cost the economy $2 billion annually.

If you or your business records confidential information (and almost every person and every business does), identity theft is a threat. Contact CanDox to learn how we can help you protect confidential records.

Comments

[jignesh]

This is really good post thanks for sharing this.
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