Coquitlam RCMP is partnering up with three local agencies to host a community shredding event this weekend as part of Fraud Awareness Month.
On Saturday, March 18 from 9:30 a.m. to noon, Silver Bullet Shredding will be providing one of its trucks so you can shred your personal documents at the Coquitlam RCMP detachment. The only cost is a donation to the Share Family and Community Services food bank.
Const. Nancy Essery with the Coquitlam RCMP Economic Crime Unit said she hopes people will use the shredding event to evaluate the way they protect their documents.
“Criminals will go through your mailbox looking for your name, birthday, phone number or financial information,” Essery said in a press release. “Simple things like protecting your bank password and PIN, keeping your birthdate and personal details offline, and shredding your documents are effective ways of protecting yourself.”
“Identity fraud cost Canadians $11 million in 2016 and that’s likely a drop in the bucket due to a lack of reporting,” said Carly Sauve of the Better Business Bureau. “Shredding documents prevents crooks from piecing any information together and keeps your identity intact.”
The Silver Bullet truck will shred all clean paper documents on site — cardboard, plastics or excessively dirty paper cannot be accepted. As well, make sure that you sort important personal, legal and tax documents before you go to the shredding event.
Only personal documents will be accepted for shredding so there is a limit of up to four boxes (or 45 kg/100 lb.).
For more information about protecting yourself from fraud, check out to the Coquitlam RCMP Protecting Yourself website or the Better Business Bureau Scam Tracker. If you think you’ve been a victim of fraud call your local police department.
The Coquitlam RCMP detachment is located at 2986 Guildford Way, next to Coquitlam city hall.
