Security

At Aviso Wealth, comprised of Aviso Financial Inc.  (including Qtrade Direct Investing, Aviso Wealth and Aviso Correspondent Partners) and Northwest & Ethical Investments LP ("NEI") (collectively, “Qtrade”), security is a top priority. We have introduced several ways to assist in protecting the personal and financial information the you entrust to us, including a primary layer of protection offered by the fact that our website only supports browsers that use 256-bit encryption.

Encryption is a process by which information is scrambled during transmission, e.g. between your computer and Qtrade. Information that is encrypted at one end is decrypted (decoded) upon receipt at the other end. 256-bit encryption is the strongest, most secure form of encryption that is generally available in Internet browsers on the market in North America today. We recommend that you use 256-bit encryption at all times and especially when conducting financial transactions over the Internet. To download a browser with 256-bit data encryption, you have a number of options. We do not recommend beta versions of browsers.

In addition to the use of 256-bit data encryption, we require that our customers use and maintain a username and password in order to access their accounts through our website.

What do we do to protect your security?

We have adopted a number of security measures including the following to ensure the protection and security of your personal information, we:

use the strongest available encryption technology to help ensure that data passing between your computer and our website is secure;
require you to use a browser that supports 256-bit encryption;
use digital certificates issued by trusted third-party companies to let you know that our site is secure;
use powerful firewalls to protect your account information; and
never send you messages asking you to provide us with personal or account information via email.

What can you do to protect your security?

When dealing with us over the Internet, you should:

never divulge your username and password, change your password frequently and make sure to create unique passwords for each online account you hold;
choose a password with a minimum of 8 characters - a strong password uses a combination of upper and lowercase, and also includes numbers and symbols;
make sure that you sign out and close your Internet browser at the end of each login session; and clear your cache regularly;
never leave your computer while logged into our website;
never send confidential or personal information through email;
always ensure anti-virus software is installed and kept up-to-date, set the anti-virus software to update automatically and use anti-virus software to scan your computer regularly; and
sign up for automatic product updates to ensure your device is protected.

Two-Factor Authentication

All Qtrade accounts are required to set up two-factor authentication (2FA), an extra layer of security that requires two distinct forms of identification to access your account. Once set up, you can enable trusted devices so any login from another device will trigger an alert and require approval to proceed, giving you better protection against cybercriminals and unauthorized account access, even if someone has your password.

Clearing your cache

To protect the confidentiality of your personal information, we highly recommend that you clear your browser's memory cache or close your browser (which will also clear the browser's memory cache) after your session.

Cookies

The use of cookies is very common and you will find them almost everywhere on the Internet. A cookie is a small text file that is placed on a computer's hard drive by a website in order to hold unique, but very limited information. A cookie cannot retrieve any other data from your hard drive, pass on computer viruses, or collect personally identifiable information to determine who you are, or capture your email address. Certain pages in our website make use of cookies. You may opt out of accepting cookies on your browser by selecting that option under your browser's "Security" settings.

Qtrade Internet Security Guarantee

We value your business and the trust you have placed in Qtrade. We take security very seriously and use a variety of measures to protect your personal information and accounts. If you are a Qtrade client, as part of our ongoing commitment to you, we're proud to offer our Qtrade Internet Security Guarantee exclusively for Qtrade account holders:

Qtrade account holders will receive 100% reimbursement for any losses in their account from unauthorized online brokerage activity *.

Our Investor Internet Security Guarantee is designed to provide you with peace of mind when doing business with us. If you detect any errors or discrepancies or suspect unauthorized activity in your Qtrade account, please contact us promptly at 1.877.787.2330.

To ensure that you are able to contact us in a timely manner, you must frequently check your Qtrade account information and transaction history online and promptly review correspondence, account statements and trade confirmations received from Qtrade. We will investigate any unauthorized activity that you report to us, and we will ask you to cooperate with us in any investigations and to take corrective measures to protect your account from further fraudulent activity.

* We will fully reimburse your Qtrade account if we conclude that there was unauthorized activity resulting in a loss and the activity occurred through no fault of your own (see Customer Responsibilities below). We will also need to ensure that the activity was not initiated by you (the account owner) or by someone whom you allowed to access your account, either purposefully or inadvertently. ↩

Qtrade responsibility

Qtrade is committed to keeping your confidential information safe. To protect your information and assets, Qtrade employs extensive physical, electronic and procedural security controls, regularly adapting them as technology and threats evolve. Click on the following link to learn more about the Steps Taken to Protect Your Confidential Information.

Customer responsibility

While Qtrade can help ensure the security of your accounts, you play a vital role in preventing and reporting unauthorized account activity. As set out in our Customer Agreements & Disclosure Documents and Terms of Use for our website and mobile app, you are responsible for maintaining the care, control and confidentiality of your usernames, login passwords and trading passwords. To protect against the loss, theft, misuse or compromise of your confidential Qtrade data, you must take the following Important Internet Safety Precautions to help protect your information when using the Internet:

Frequently check your Qtrade accounts.
Protect your passwords.
Get up-to-date anti-virus and anti-spyware software.
Use a firewall.
Ensure your browser and operating system are always up-to-date.
Protect your Internet connection — especially with a wireless network.
Protect yourself from online fraud.

Qtrade customers will be liable for any losses that occur as a result of: (i) the voluntarily disclosure of their usernames or passwords; or (ii) the careless or improper handling, storing or disclosure of such information. In the event of any loss, theft, misuse or compromise of your confidential Qtrade data, you must promptly notify Qtrade at 1.877.787.2330.

Please see below for other important details and conditions.

Notes:

This guarantee only applies to Qtrade Direct Investing account.
This guarantee does not cover situations in which you: (i) fail to follow your customer responsibilities as noted above; or (ii) authorize account activity, including: (1) the activities of any person to whom you have given, or with whom you have shared, your customer username and passwords, and (2) the activities of any person, including an investment advisor or professional (its employees and agents), to whom you have granted authority of any type over your account (such as power of attorney, trading or money movement authorization or an investment management relationship).
The guarantee does not cover any tax consequences, your legal fees and expenses, or any consequential, lost opportunity or non-monetary damages. The guarantee will not apply in any situation in which you do not report unauthorized activity promptly to Qtrade Investor.
You must work with us in any investigation, and we may ask that you take additional steps including, but not limited to, filing a police report, completing a notarized affidavit regarding the unauthorized transactions, cooperating and answering questions from Qtrade Investor and law enforcement authorities, and, if necessary, allowing access to the computer or other access device that is suspected of being compromised.
Qtrade will determine the type and amount of reimbursement, including whether to replace the securities in your account that were taken, and may seek restitution for reimbursements made under this guarantee from the person(s) or entity that committed the unauthorized activity. We may not provide reimbursement if you are reimbursed, or eligible for reimbursement or other coverage, by others for the unauthorized transactions; for example, by your insurance company.
Qtrade may ask that you assign to us certain rights you may have regarding your loss and to sign a release form as a condition of reimbursement. You may not assign your rights under the guarantee to any other individual or party.

Online brokerage services are offered through Qtrade Direct Investing, a division of Aviso Financial Inc. Qtrade, Qtrade Direct Investing, and Write your own future are trade names and/or trademarks of Aviso Wealth. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P (“NEI” or “NEI Investments”) is a subsidiary of Aviso Wealth; and NEI Funds are related issuers of Qtrade Direct Investing.