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T Be proactive at protecting your personal information Dollars & Sense Peter Watson Guest Contributor 21 | Thursday, April 25, 2013 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com here has been a serious breach of the privacy of 52,000 Canadians who have investment accounts with 32 investment dealers by the organization responsible for ensuring dealers safeguard your privacy. In mid-April, the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) announced a portable device containing personal information on 52,000 Canadians was lost in late February. The rst question is who is IIROC and what do they do? IIROC is a national self-regulatory organization, which oversees the activities of all investment dealers in Canada and is required to conduct compliance reviews of investment dealers' client accounts. Investment dealers are required to provide IIROC access to personal information on all investors. It's website describes its role as "protecting investors and fostering fair and ef cient capital markets across Canada." Last week, IIROC mailed notification letters to all investors affected by this security breach. In most cases, the information lost included some or all of the following: name, address, date of birth, the name of investment dealer and account numbers. Some investors were affected by the loss of more sensitive information. They too have been advised. Unfortunately this will have affected many readers of this column. We can use this event as a learning experience and be better prepared by being proactive at protecting our personal information -- that includes protecting ourselves from identify theft, which occurs when someone steals your personal identity and then uses that information to steal your assets. An example is someone pretending to be you, arranging a mortgage on your house and taking the mortgage funds while leaving you with the mortgage debt. To put this in the appropriate perspective, technology allows for the free ow and exchange of information between various users wanting access to your data. You must safeguard yourself against the loss and misuse of this sensitive and private information. Simple actions will make identity theft dif cult. We suggest you do not carry your birth certi cate or your social insurance number in your wallet. Losing your wallet containing these two important documents is a real prize for a thief. Monitor your nancial information. Shred documents before discarding. Check transactions on debit and credit card statements to ensure only those purchases you authorized are listed. Do not release private information to anyone who has contacted you unless you are absolutely sure who that person is and you trust them. If need be, you can get the telephone number of the person calling and call them back. If you are satis ed they are who they say they are then you may decide to release personal information. Personal information can also be lost by someone just observing your lifestyle or knowing what your occupation is. For many, their nancial assets are no secret. People can get your address and phone number through many different on-line directory services. Social media is also a way of disclosing who you are to the world. Real privacy has become a thing of the past. Conducting a credit check on yourself is one of the best actions you can take to determine if your privacy has been compromised. Does all of the information from your credit check fairly re ect you? Are there any aspects that you do not recognize such as having credit activity with institutions you do not use? The two options you have for obtaining credit checks are Equifax Canada and TransUnion Canada. Both rms have websites. IIROC has said there is no evidence the information lost has been accessed or used by a third party. That is good news. What will be even better news is if this motivates us all to be more proactive at protecting our own privacy. -- Submitted by Peter Watson, MBA, CFP , R.F .P ., CIM, FCSI., Certi ed Financial Planner EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT CHARGES Halton District School Board NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETINGS FIRST MEETING ­ POLICY REVIEW PUBLIC MEETING ­ WEDNESDAY, MAY 22, 2013 @ 7:00 P.M. Halton District School Board, J.W. Singleton Centre 2050 Guelph Line, Burlington TAKE NOTICE that on May 22, 2013, the Halton District School Board will hold a public meeting pursuant to Section 257.60 of the Education Act. The purpose of the meeting will be to review the current education development charge policies of the Board and to solicit public input. Any person who attends the meeting may make a representation to the Board in respect of the policies under the process outlined in the Board's delegation by-law. The Board will also consider any written submissions. A Policy Review Document setting out the Board's policies for the current education development charge by-law will be available on or before May 1, 2013, at the Board's administration offices, during regular office hours or on the Board website at www.hdsb.ca. . IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWED BY: SECOND MEETING ­ SUCCESSOR BY-LAW PUBLIC MEETING ­ WEDNESDAY, MAY 22, 2013 @ 7:30 PM Halton District School Board, J.W. Singleton Centre 2050 Guelph Line, Burlington TAKE NOTICE that on May 22, 2013, the Halton District School Board will hold a second public meeting pursuant to Section 257.63 of the Education Act. The purpose of the second public meeting is to consider the continued imposition of education development charges and a successor by-law and to inform the public generally about the Board's education development charge proposal. Any person who attends the meeting may make a representation to the Board in respect of the proposal under the process outlined in the Board's delegation by-law. The Board will also consider any written submissions. All submissions received in writing and those expressed at the public meeting will be considered prior to the enactment of an education development charge by-law. On Wednesday, June 19, 2013, the Board will consider the adoption of a by-law imposing education development charges in Halton Region. The education development charge background study required under Section 257.61 of the Education Act (including the proposed EDC by-law) which sets out the Board's education development charge proposal will be available on or before May 1, 2013, at the Board's administrative offices, during regular office hours or on the Board website at www.hdsb.ca. THIRD PUBLIC MEETING ­ IN CONSIDERATION OF BY-LAW ADOPTION ­ WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19, 2013 @ 7:00 PM Halton District School Board, J.W. Singleton Centre 2050 Guelph Line, Burlington TAKE NOTICE that on June 19, 2013, the Halton District School Board will hold a third public meeting. The purpose of this meeting is to consider the enactment of a successor EDC by-law that will apply in Halton Region. Any person who attends the meeting may make representations to the Board in respect of this matter under the process outlined in the Board's delegation by-law. Written submissions, filed in advance of the meeting, will also be considered. All interested parties are invited to attend the public meetings. Representations to the Board will be required to follow the process and timelines specified in the Board's delegation by-law. The Board would appreciate receiving written submissions one week prior to the Public Meetings, so that they may be distributed to Trustees prior to the meetings. Submissions and requests to address the Board as a delegation should be submitted to: Gail Gortmaker Manager, Director's Office Halton District School Board 2050 Guelph Line, Burlington, Ontario L7R 3Z2 Email: gortmakerg@hdsb.ca Telephone: (905) 335-3665 Facsimile: (905) 315-8930 Any comments or requests for further information regarding this matter may be directed to Lucy Veerman, Superintendent of Business Services and Treasurer for the Halton District School Board at (905) 335-3665. Amy Collard, Chair of the Board Halton District School Board David Euale, Director of Education Halton District School Board