A day after Alberta’s Health Minister announced sensitive information for 620,000 Albertans had been stolen in September, 2013, many are undoubtedly concerned – here’s what you can do if there’s a chance your identifying information may have been compromised.
On Wednesday, Health Minister Fred Horne told Albertans that personal information, such as names, dates of birth, provincial health care card numbers, along with billing and diagnostic codes for 620,000 Albertans was stolen on September 26, 2013.
The laptop was stolen from an IT consultant working for Medicentres Family Health Care Clinics – and contained information for patients seen at the Medicentres Clinics between May 2, 2011 and September 19, 2013.
Officials also said Wednesday that there had so far been no indication the information, that had been unencrypted, had been used or accessed – but still shared ways for those who believe they may have been affected to protect themselves.
Medicentres has established a phone line for patients to contact them and find out whether their information was compromised, 780-484-8741, or send an email to info@medicentres.com.
Alberta Health was also urging Albertans to keep a close eye on their credit card and bank statements, and to contact the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Alberta (OIPC) with any concerns.
An official with Equifax said a potential fraudster can cause extensive damage in a short period of time.
“They can create a new ID in your name, and start applying for credit cards in your name, and then the collection companies will start calling you 90 days from now when the fraudsters don’t pay their bills,” John Russo said.
Medicentre patients affected by the theft can obtain a free credit report through Equifax or TransUnion – in addition to paid services such as flagging your account, a service that costs about $5.
“It will alert them to take further steps to authenticate they are who they say they are, and they’re not the fraudster who has stolen their ID,” Russo said.
While other companies, such as Target in the United States, is covering the cost of such a service in the wake of their own privacy breaches, Medicentres said the company was not going to cover those costs.
“Medicentres does apologize for the inconvenience that this may cause patients, but we will not be compensating patients,” Dr. Arif Bhimjiat with Medicentres Canada said.
The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre has also put together a guide for individuals who believe their information may have been stolen and used, a guide for what to do if there are identity theft concerns, how to report what happened and who to talk to, on their website.
Minister Horne has also ordered an investigation by the Privacy Commissioner over the theft of the laptop, under the Health Information Act. More information on the HIA can be found on the provincial government’s website.
With files from Amanda Anderson
