Shopping with credit cards make you vulnerable to identity theft
. To ensure identity theft protection one must follow certain norms as a credit card user.
It is very wrong to throw away the credit card receipts in public trash baskets. Identity thieves can use this to your disadvantage. These receipts contain the card account numbers which is the prime requirement of identity theft.
ID theft protection can also be ensured by keeping photocopies of your credit cards. You must keep these photocopies in a secure place so that you can produce them immediately upon the loss of the card and get a replacement as soon as possible. To make sure that no additional amount is deducted from your credit card balance upon the report of fraudulent purchases, you must use your credit card only after authorization.
Identity theft can also occur when you use your credit cards for online banking or online shopping purposes. A way to prevent this would be to install antivirus software on your computer. You must update it regularly so that the database does not become obsolete and the protection is always enabled. Do not do online shopping or online banking from any public computer. These computers are not properly protected and you never know if they are hacked.
Be very careful about divulging your credit card number to someone you so not know. Do not give the number to any one and every one who calls up and asks you to do so. You should disclose the number only when you receive the call from the official number of the company concerned.
A bit of carelessness on your part can inflict heavy financial losses upon you. Sometimes it is seen that people carry multiple number of credit cards with them. This increases the chances of losing the cards and therefore identity theft though credit cards. Paying credit card bills through post office is always safer than doing so from the online mail box. Check your credit card statement regularly so that any sign of identity theft can immediately be reported and sorted out.