With the United States facing a financial slump rivaling that of the Great Depression, it comes as no surprise that US citizens have little interest in what’s going on up north. However, up in Montreal, there’s another situation altogether.

In late September, National Bank of Canada reported a laptop that had been stolen. In the Reuters article written by Lynne Olver, the bank’s head office commented that “the risk of fraud or identity theft was ‘minimal.’”

Later in the article, Denis Dube –spokesman for the bank– said names, addresses, and bank reference numbers for its mortgage customers were in the database on the laptop, though the bank declined to mention exactly how many clients are affected.

As the sixth largest bank in Canada, they’ve got a bit of informing to do. The bank claimed it would “protect clients by informing them quickly about the event.” The bank suggested that clients report unauthorized transactions in accounts, and promised that any damages would be compensated if necessary.

Fortunately, according to Dube, no personal data such as social insurance numbers (equivalent to the US’s Social Security program) or credit information were stored on the laptop.

Regardless of the so-called “minimal” risk of fraud and identity theft, it’s amazing how easily any technologically adept individual could access the laptop and the files. And with important information such as bank reference numbers at stake, it’s highly unlikely that this theft was merely a random crime.

The National Bank of Canada could have avoided this upset altogether with proper security measures. The simple registration of any laptop online at the MyLaptopGPS website ensures the protection of secure files like bank reference numbers.

Well, maybe next time, eh?