Identity theft is no joke!

With social media, Canadians are sharing more personal information online than ever before, which means there's more for cyber criminals to steal. Learn how to protect yourself and your personal information from cyber criminals who are trying to steal your digital identity.

There's probably a lot of information about you online, like your:

• full name
• birthday
• phone number
• work history
• social insurance number
• login credentials

That information makes up your digital identity. And you might be sharing it without even realizing.

Only 17% of Canadians feel it's likely that their personal information will be compromised from a cyber threat ^{Note i}

But 42% of Canadians have experienced at least one type of cyber security threat within the past year ^{Note ii}

Whenever you use

• social media (image of a cursor near a hand holding a phone)
• financial services (image of a cursor near a wad of cash)
• cloud services (image of a cursor near a cloud with the Wi-Fi symbol coming from it)
• web browsers (image of a cursor hovering over the URL bar on a computer window)
• online databases (image of a cursor near a padlock and key with a cloud behind them)
• online subscription (image of a cursor near a button with text "Sign Up")

your data is collected.

76% of Canadians rank identity theft as their biggest concern when thinking about cyber security ^{Note iii}

And it should be.

Cyber threats can leave your data and identity exposed to:

Phishing (image of phone with new  email marked important): Phony messages designed to trick you into clicking links or sharing information.

Data breaches (image of a phone with a fingerprint and the "unlocked" symbol): Information stolen from companies you've shared information with

Social engineering (image of phone with chat in progress): Like phishing, but more personalized to manipulate you

Deepfakes (image of phone with silhouette of unknown person marked with !?): Media created to impersonate you using your face or voice

Protect your digital identity

• Secure your Wi-Fi
• Use strong passphrases or passwords
• Limit how much personal information you share online
• Install anti-virus software
• Update devices and software often
• Watch out for suspicious activity on your accounts

Get more tips to protect yourself and your devices at GetCyberSafe.ca.

1. i

    Get Cyber Safe Awareness Tracking Survey, EKOS, 2020

2. ii

    Web Panel Survey on Cyber Security During the Pandemic, Statistics Canada, 2020

3. iii

    Survey of Internet Users Regarding Cyber Security, EKOS, 2018

Catalogue number: D96-37/2021E-PDF | ISBN: 978-0-660-38441-2