Dell Canada Customers Private Data Exposed to Fraud in Recent Breach

A frustrated consumer filed a lawsuit against Dell Canada in Nova Scotia court claiming that Dell’s negligence in assessing and resolving its 2017 data breach exposed his personal information to scammers.

The data breach occurred in 2017 when two employees at Dell’s third-party call centre allegedly sold customer information, including contact information and data about their Dell purchases, on two separate occasions.

This leak has purportedly allowed scammers to send targeted calls and emails to unsuspecting consumers under the false guise of Dell tech support, as detailed in an investigation report by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC). 

Not only are these scam communications an annoyance — the plaintiff says he’s been inundated with scam calls at all hours of the day, five to 10 times per day, seven days a week, according to Global News — but they also place consumers like him at risk of major issues like fraud or identity theft.

More than 7,000 potential Class Members may have been affected by scam calls and emails as a direct result of the call centre data breach, according to the lawsuit against Dell Canada.

According to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC), there were 68,452 Canadian reports of fraud in 2020, with fraud losses totaling $106.4 million as of Feb. 8, 2021.

Fraudsters can use information gleaned from scam communications to commit identity theft, using it to cash cheques, steal from bank accounts, and more. Because of this, it is especially important for institutions and businesses that handle personal information to have parameters and systems in place to adequately protect the sensitive personal information they’re given.

This targeted scamming strategy is not unique to Dell or other tech-related services. The CAFC also warns specifically against COVID-19 related scams and fraud, in which scammers peddling fake COVID-19 vaccines or posing as private companies offering fast COVID-19 tests offer unsuspecting consumers medical advice in exchange for urgent payment.

Other common scams include phone, text, or email communications claiming to be from the government or other organization that demand immediate payment such as taxes or debts.

Consumers should avoid providing any personal information to any form of communication unless they are sure that the person or organization with whom they are speaking are credible and legitimate. Unfortunately, this may be more difficult to assess such as in the case of scammers calling and posing as dell tech support. 

Overall, unsolicited calls — especially those that demand your personal information — should not be trusted. The CAFC advises consumers to question and research the company that is supposedly contacting them. 

Canadians who have received scam calls can also file a report with the CAFC.   

If you are a Dell customer with a hardware product from 2017 to the present and you have received targeted Dell tech support email or phone call scams after the June 2017 data breach, you may be able to join a class action lawsuit investigation and pursue compensation.