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Recent examples include a Highway 407 toll alert smishing campaign which threatened vehicle registration suspension and potential legal action if targeted individuals didn’t comply right away. Victims were sent a phishing link that led to a hacker-controlled site where their personal details were harvested.

Many people in Canada have fallen victim to scams like this, according to the latest data from the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC).

According to the CAFC, more than 34,000 people in Canada were victims of fraud last year, with the most common types of scams including advance fee scams, phishing, smishing, romance scams, investment scams and government impersonation scams.

If you think you have accidentally given a scammer your personally identifiable information (PII) there are steps you can take to mitigate the damage.

“The key is to act quickly,” says cybersecurity expert Abbas Yazdinejad, whose PhD research at the University of ���߲ݴ�ýfocused on cyber threat intelligence and cyber threat hunting.

Yazdinejad says there are a number of steps individuals must take to protect themselves after their information gets compromised and it will all depend on the type of PII that was stolen. 

Contact your financial institutions

If you provided scammers your banking or credit card information, you have to notify your bank right away, he says. Explain to them that your account details were compromised so they can either cancel your card and issue a new one, put a hold on your account to prevent unauthorized withdrawals or, at the very least, monitor your account for fraudulent activities.

“Quick reporting can limit financial losses. For example, credit card companies often have zero-liability policies if informed promptly,” Yazdinejad adds.

Change your passwords, secure your accounts

If the data leaked includes login credentials, change your password into a stronger one and enable multifactor authentication (MFA). Adding MFA wherever possible is like “having a deadbolt to the door of your digital life,” he said.

“This ensures any access the scammer gained is cut off.”

If you reused the passwords on other sites, make sure those also get changed.

Moving forward, Yazdinejad recommends using a password manager that can generate and remember unique passwords for each of your accounts.

“This way, you can have a 16-character unique password for each account without losing your mind trying to remember them all,” he said.

Freeze your credit and add fraud alerts

If other sensitive information was disclosed, like your Social Insurance Number (SIN) or date of birth, contact major credit bureaus immediately. These companies can help you set up a security freeze on your credit file or fraud alerts.

A fraud alert informs lenders that you may be a victim of identity theft and they should take extra steps to verify your identity before opening a new credit in your name, while a credit freeze actually prevents new credit checks entirely, Yazdinejad explains.

These can help stop hackers and scammers from applying for loans or credit cards using your stolen information.

It’s also a good idea to get a copy of your credit report and look for any new accounts or inquiries you don’t recognize, he adds.

“Early detection is crucial. For instance, noticing an unfamiliar loan on your credit report could tip you off that someone tried to use your identity.”

Notify government agencies and report the incident to authorities

If you think your SIN is compromised, you also need to alert the appropriate government agencies. You can contact Service Canada, which can advise you on the next steps to prevent hackers from using your SIN for fraud.

“Also notify the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre and your local police if your SIN or other identity info, like a driver’s licence or passport, was stolen,” Yazdinejad said.

If you shared your driver’s licence information or passport details, contact the issuing agency as soon as you can to check if they can recommend any protective measures or put notes on your file, he advised.

“Filing an official police report is important, especially if you suffered a financial loss or identity theft,” he adds.

While in some instances a single report won’t lead to an immediate major police investigation, making a police report creates an important and official record of the incident. The latter can help when you make insurance claims or file disputes with creditors.

“You might feel like, ‘What can they really do?’ but your report can help law enforcement connect the dots,” he explains.

Keep an eye on your accounts and watch out for followup scams

Monitor your inbox and double-check your bank statements the next couple of days and weeks and remain vigilant. Scammers may either use your information for follow up fraud immediately or attempt something later on when they think you’ve let your guard down.

“Be wary of any followup contacts from people claiming to ‘help you recover’ from the scam,” Yazdinejad warns, adding fraud victims are sometimes targeted again by con artists pretending to assist with recovery of funds or help with dealing with the damage.

Also, watch out for “phishing 2.0,” he warns.

Traditional phishing emails full of typos and odd grammar are becoming a thing of the past, Yazdinejad says. New AI language models, the same technology behind chatbots, are now enabling scammers to generate polished, professionally looking or even personalized messages.

Document everything

Throughout all of the steps mentioned above, document everything. Write down the dates, times, contact numbers, names of agencies and representatives you reported to.

Keeping a solid paper trail can help in case a dispute arises.

“For example, (if) a fraudulent account does slip through, you have proof that you alerted authorities and banks at a certain time,” Yazdinejad says.