subject: Protecting Your Personal Information | Credit Card Usage [print this page] Protecting Your Personal Information | Credit Card Usage
Do you realize that just about every day, you share some sort of personal information with someone? You may not even notice it, but writing a check for that school fundraiser, ordering your favorite college sweatshirt online, applying for a credit card or even using your laptop on an unsecure network can be dangerous. Each transaction requires you to share personal information.
What is your information being used for, who will see it and will it be safe? It seems that now a days, thieves are trying to find the easiest and most lucrative way to make a buck. The personal information you provide, whether it be a personal password, credit card number, mother's maiden name or your social security number, you have to be very careful that it does not fall into the wrong hands. Once your personal information has fallen into the wrong hands, it is impossible to get it back and after a fraudulent account is opened, it will be up to you to clean up the mess.
Protect your personal information. Be very careful who you give it to and always be aware of how they handle and use your information. It could be the difference between a carefree life and a life of constantly looking over your shoulder. Thieves do not care who they target and how much it costs the victim. If they were a nice person, they wouldn't be stealing your personal information to begin with.
For so long, technology was always intended to make our lives easier and more convenient. Unfortunately, it has only caused more and more grief for today's consumers. I'm sure the intention was never to make it easier for thieves to steal our personal information, but in most cases it has. We need to go back to using cash instead of allowing strangers into our personal finances at every turn.
Always be cautious of who asks for what information. Even legitimate companies have unscrupulous people working for them. If you think your personal information has been compromised, report it immediately. This will help to minimize the damage that is sure to come your way.
