Unsolved Mystery: Passport Applications Go Missing

Think of all the personal information you offer up when you fill out a passport application: Your name, Social Insurance Number, address, spouse name...the list goes on. You also hand over copies of your birth certificate or citizenship card. You assume the Canadian government is going to fiercely protect this information, and there isn’t a risk of it getting into the wrong hands. Unfortunately, that's not always the case.

The passport applications of 61 Canadians have been lost after being handled by a Canada Post outlet and a Service Canada facility in Kelowna, B.C. This happened in March, and yet the victims were not told about the loss until May. Passport Canada advised the victims to check their bank and credit card accounts for signs of fraud.

Officials aren't sure at this point if the documents were stolen, or simply misplaced. There is an investigation underway.

This isn't the first time a bundle of passports has been lost. Officials are still investigating a case of "misplaced" passport applications in Ethbridge and Medicine Hat in southern Alberta and Cranbrook, B.C. from last year.

Blame the economy?

As the economy goes sour, more and more people turn to illicit ways to get by. Your passport application is a neat little bundle containing enough personal information to drain a bank account or open a fraudulent account in the victim's name. It seems that this bundle of passport applications proved just too tempting, especially when stored “in clear plastic bags on open shelves”, as federal privacy commissioner's Jennifer Stoddart's report says. The report also says that once applications are processed, they are sometimes thrown into garbage or recycling bins without even being shredded. Obviously the passport agencies aren't doing enough to protect us.   

It's out of our hands

This incident is a good reminder that so much identity theft is completely out of our hands. Passport applications are stolen, corporate databases containing our information are hacked. There’s little we can do to protect our information when someone else is supposed to be guarding it.

There are a couple of steps you can take, though, to know if you are a victim. It is essential to regularly monitor your monthly credit card and bank statements for fraudulent transactions. Also, pull your credit reports several times a year to check for unauthorized accounts. At least then you can know if someone out there is using your personal information for their personal gain, and can take steps to stop it.