Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) has once again released its annual list of the most frequently stolen vehicles today.

The Honda Civic held on to the top spot as the most stolen vehicle in Canada. The appearance of high-end models like the Cadillac Escalade on the list reflects the increasing involvement of organized crime in auto theft.

Although many high-end four-wheel drive vehicles like the BMW X6, Toyota RAV4 and Lexus RX350 don’t appear in the top ten, thieves are stealing them in greater numbers than ever before. There is a demand for vehicles like these in Ghana, Nigeria, Dubai, Lebanon, the Middle East and Eastern Europe. Organized criminals are shipping the vehicles overseas, and as a result, the recovery rate for stolen vehicles in Canada continues to decline, even though there are fewer thefts in total.

The Top Ten Stolen Vehicles are:

1. 2000 Honda Civic SiR 2-door
2. 2003 Cadillac Escalade ESV 4-door AWD
3. 1999 Honda Civic SiR 2-door
4. 2006 Chevrolet/GMC Trailblazer SS 4-door 4WD
5. 2002 Cadillac Escalade EXT 4-door AWD
6. 2005 Cadillac Escalade ESV 4-door AWD
7. 1997 Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder 2-door
8. 2000 Audi S4 Quattro 4-door
9. 2006 Hummer H2 4-door AWD
10. 2005 Cadillac Escalade 4-door 4WD

Related Posts
Canada's Top 10 Stolen Cars 2008
Canada's Top 10 Stolen Cars 2007
Canada's Top 10 Stolen Cars 2006
Canada's Top 10 Stolen Cars 2005

Canada Post will be increase the postal rates by 5.4% on January 11, 2009. Time to stock up on those permanent stamps while they still cost 54 cents. Cost Co sells rolls of 100 Permanent stamps for $52.50 The new rates will be:

Canada Post Rate Increases

Postal Class / Service	Weight Break	2009 Rates	Jan 11th 2010 Rates
Domestic Lettermail - Standard	0g - 30g	$0.54	$0.57
	30g - 50g	$0.98	$1.00
Domestic Lettermail - Other	0g - 100g	$1.18	$1.22
	100g - 200g	$1.96	$2.00
	200g - 300g	n/a	$2.75
	300g - 400g*	n/a	$3.00
	400g - 500g*	n/a	$3.25

Once the price of the permanent stamp increase to 57 cents you should still be able use multiple P stamps at the new rate. For example you can use 5 P Stamps plus 40 cents of regular stamps to send a 400-500g package. Which would be a 4.6% savings.

Craigslist is a website that allows people to post classified ads for goods or services that they want to buy or sell. Due to a large number of spam ads being posted on the website the company implemented an account verification system for service ads. Craigslist also restricted each account to posting only 3 ads every 48 hours.

To have an active Craigslist account you need an email account, a IP address, and a phone number that has been call back verified. If these three do not match Craigslist will not allow you to create an account.

For spammers the first two are easy to create. They can create Gmail or Hotmail accounts, and by routing through different internet servers have unique IPs associated with each email account. What they have difficulty doing is by passing the phone number call back verification.

When creating a Craigslist account an automated system will call you back to the phone number that you provided. The automated system will says "This is Craigslist calling your pin number is 12345." You have to enter this pin number to activate the Craigslist account online.

Spammers don't want their phone number linked to the spam Craigslist account. Also posting hundreds of spam ads on Craigslist will require hundreds of phone numbers.

The Do Not Call List Scam

A spammer call you and says:

This Steve Harperson calling from the Canadian National Do Not Call List. We would like to ensure that your phone number is included in the National Do Not Call List. In a few minutes after I hang up a lady will call you and provide you with an activation number. I will then call back and if you provide me with that activation number you will be added to on the Canadian National Do Not Call List.

The spammer then enters your phone number on the Craigslist account activation page. You will get a call from 310-928-7055 which is the Craigslist activation call center. The automated message will give you an activation pin number.

After you hang up the spammer will call back and ask for the pin number. If you give him the number your telephone number is now associated with the spam Craigslist account that he has created.

From talking to people who have been targeted the spammers will be persistent. They will call back even if you hang up or tell them to get lost.

Your best bet is don't agree to have anyone call you back. Tell them that you have their phone number (this number changes as they route through different telephone exchanges) and that you will be filing a report with the police.

How Much is a Craigslist Phone Number Verified Account Worth?

Millions of people use Craigslist every day.

A Craigslist PVA account is worth a lot to a spammer. They can use the account to post fake ads, sell stolen goods or perpetuate fraud, and your phone number is associated with this activity.

Craigslist PVA accounts, in large amounts, sell online for $5.00 to $6.00 each. Good money for 10 minutes of social engineering.

Victims Stories
Suri - 28 Nov 2008
I got a call from this number , prior to this I got a call from 919-674-0114 and they said I will get a call and a 5 digit activation code will be left in your voice mail, and within 5 minutes I will call you back and you please provide the activation number, so that no unsolicited calls will be made to you in future. They said the US Govt's DNC has chosen craig's list to provide this service and I will not be charged a penny for this service

Anonymous - 1 Jul 2009
I got a call around 2.30 PM today. The caller identified him as David Kingston from FCC and informed me that they will send a 5 digit code for stopping marketing calls. In the next minute, I received a call from the number 310-928-7055 (an automated message) that gave a code (Some where in the message, I heard Craigs List). After a minute, the same caller called me to confirm the code (identified himself as David Kingston of FCC again). When I asked him about the relationship between FCC and Craigs List, he started threatening me that he can levy a penalty as I am rejecting a call from FCC. I asked him to stop calling me and hung up. He called me again and asked the reason for disconnecting my call. I was really annoyed and asked him to stop calling me.

Many people are having difficulty accessing Bell Canada's website to stay with paper billing. Here is a step by step how to guide on staying with paper billing from Bell.

The best method should be to call Bell and tell them that you want to remain on paper billing. While doing so complain that they are wasting your time with their negative option ebilling. Bell Canada can be reached at:

In Ontario and Quebec: 310-BELL (2355) (no charge)*
From anywhere else in Canada and the U.S.: 1 800 668-6878 (no charge)

Hours of operation
Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Saturday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The website is bell.ca/staypaper

You can click on the images to make the screen shots larger.

1. Enter http://bell.ca/staypaper in the URL bar.
2. Click the "Register now" button to create an online account. This is assuming that you have never created an online account with Bell.




3. On the next page click on "Register now" again to create an online account.




4. Enter all of the required information to create an online account.
5. Uncheck the box that authorizes Bell to send you junk email.
6. Click "Continue".




Now you should received a confirmation activation email from Bell. If there is a link in this email click on it to activate your account. If there is no confirmation email check your junk mail folder.

Otherwise you can try entering your user name and password.

7. Enter your user name.
8. Enter your password.
9. Click on "Log in".




Your billing profile should now show up with your name and account number.

10. Check the box that says "I want to receive a paper bill"
11. Click on "Continue"




You should receive a confirmation screen.

The process is quite long it will take you 20-30 minutes to complete. If you have any questions or complaints you should call Bell and voice your concerns.

Related Post:
Bell Canada Paperless Billing