$52 million class-action suit pending against IIROC

La Presse has learned that IIROC may soon be the subject of a class-action suit instituted by Montreal law firm De Grandpré Chait.

Read: IIROC loses client information

In February, an IIROC employee lost a portable device containing sensitive information on 52,000 customers from 32 brokerage firms. The data was not encrypted.

De Grandpré Chait estimated the damage caused by stress, potential for fraudulent information use, and inconvenience at $1,000 per customer.

Read: CSA reviews IIROC’s policies after data loss

The firm’s lawyer, Louis Demers, told La Presse he believes IIROC has contravened the Privacy Act, which provides that “business must take security measures to protect personal information they have collected.”

Lucy Becker, Vice President, Public Affairs told Conseiller.ca by email that “it is inappropriate to comment as the matter is before the courts.”

No impact on credit

On Tuesday, IIROC announced additional measures it’s taking to protect the credit ratings of any concerned clients.

The SRO had already arranged to put a six-year alert on client credit files through Equifax Canada, but customers can also subscribe to credit monitoring for one year. They can opt in to receive this service by calling Equifax at 1-866-205-0679, or 1-866-466-9577 (for service in French).

It made similar arrangements with TransUnion, which clients can opt out of by 1-800-663-9980, or 1-877-713-3393 (for service in French).

This story originally appeared on Conseiller.ca.

Conseiller.ca Staff

The staff of Conseiller.ca have been covering news for Quebec financial advisors since 2000.