Consumers will have one more level of protection when they make credit-card purchases in the new year, the federal privacy commissioner said Wednesday.

Jennifer Stoddart said representatives of the retail industry have told her that all equipment used to electronically process credit-card payments will mask the cardholders' personal information in 2007.

Jennifer Stoddart
(Jacques Boissinot/Canadian Press)

"It's time for retailers to move towards technology that obscures credit-card numbers on receipts. They need to help protect their customers' information," she said in a release.

"This is an issue my office will be keeping an eye on in the new year."

If a receipt includes a full credit-card number and ends up in the wrong hands, "it could be used to commit credit-card fraud," said Stoddart.

She advised consumers to be aware of their rights, and ask retailers questions if they doubt requests for personal information or about how the information is handled.
 
While the federal privacy law requires retailers to protect personal information to prevent frauds and maintain the customer's privacy, that hasn't been happening, a report published earlier this year said.

Compliance with Canadian Data Protection Laws: Are Retailers Measuring Up? concluded there was "widespread non-compliance" with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act.

Prepared by the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic, with financial support from Stoddart's office, the report looked at 64 online, and 72 online and offline retailers.

Stoddart also reminded consumers to protect their personal information while shopping, including being cautious when asked to fill out warranty cards and joining points or rewards programs.

"Many companies use product warranty cards to collect personal information for marketing purposes. In many cases, filling out a warranty card results in more junk mail and telemarketing calls," the release said.

Stores often share the consumer's information without consent when they join a points or rewards program, it said.