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Statistics Canada warns of bogus callers

January 7, 2009

OTTAWA — Statistics Canada has issued a warning to the public about callers who claim to be an employee and who demand social insurance numbers (SIN), credit card numbers or bank account information. While Statistics Canada has many ongoing surveys, it does not collect this kind of personal financial information.

These callers are in fact not Statistics Canada employees. Their requests are not legitimate, and the public should not provide any information that they request. In some cases, bogus callers simply reference a Statistics Canada survey while in others they refer to the Census of Canada.

Statistics Canada is asking anyone who receives such a call to contact the agency at 1‑800‑263‑1136 (toll-free) or at infostats@statcan.gc.ca.

Statistics Canada is also advising anyone who may already have provided their SIN, credit card number or bank account information under suspicious circumstances over the phone to contact their local police service.

For more information, contact Media Relations at 613-951-4636.