Angry in the Great White North

From the Globe and Mail:

Insurer Sun Life Financial Inc. suspended one of its client service representatives this week after police charged her with using a phony credit card, allegedly acquired under the name of a Sun Life customer whose information she had obtained at the office.

Detective Ian McArthur of 13 Division said that a woman was arrested at a furniture store after the size of her purchases raised questions. She had a credit card in another person's name, he said, and a list of names and personal information that would have allowed her to apply for several more.

Marilyn Linton, 44, of Toronto was charged with fraud, obtaining credit under false pretense, and five counts of possessing property obtained by crime.

An investigation is underway:

According to Sun Life, if the allegations are true, Ms. Linton was able to access customer information from the group business, which is a package of policies Sun Life sells to employers.

[Spokesman Michel] Leduc said the company is contacting corporate clients that have been affected.

In the meantime, three divisions of the company, including the security team and the chief privacy officer, are participating in an internal probe. That group is scouring Ms. Linton's e-mail correspondence and working with police.

Now we know. My group insurance is provided by Blue Cross, so I'm in the clear. If you get insurance from work, and it is provided by Sun Life, you've been exposed. I wouldn't suggest contacting Sun Life, but I would make sure that the Human Resources department is aware of what is going on and is in contact with Sun Life, as promised by Sun Life spokesman.

Linton was arrested with at least one credit card not in her name. We don't know how many other cards she created and used, or how many applications she had on the go when she was arrested. Nor do we know what else she was doing with the information she was stealing.