subject: Preventing Identity Theft - Keeping Your Information Secure [print this page] Identity thieves are relentless in their pursuit to fraudulently use the identity of another for their personal gain. The number of individuals whose identity is stolen is growing at an alarming rate. How these individuals can be stopped has a lot to do with how cautious one is in handling their personal and private information. Knowing which documents need to be secured is important, and researching identity theft insurance is essential. There are a number of ways in which you can ensure identity theft protection and keep these criminals from invading your life.
Start with keeping close tabs on your credit report. Each one of us with any kind of account is now allowed access once each year to the information included there. Any fraudulent use would show up here right away. Pay close attention to all accounts listed and make sure you recognize each of them and the amounts concur with what you have for the amount owed. If nothing else, when data is entered, it could be entered in error and show as a glitch on your report. Either way, it pays to keep up with these reports.
We have become a society of numbers. Every one of us is somehow connected to a number. It could be our Social Security number, our birth date, a credit card number, or a driver's license number. Anyone of these, as well as others, can allow a perpetrator to enter our world, and if they wish, become one with us. Where the similarity ends is where the thief most often cannot be identified and you are left to clean up the mountain of damage that has been caused. We have become a society of cyberspace technology. We use computers to access credit card statements and our banking institutions. Is it not plausible than that identity thieves are making headway in computer identity theft? If it has not already been done, install one of the many programs designed to halt these hackers, such as malware or spyware.
Have you been notified by a close friend that they are in a crisis situation and need your immediate help? More often then not, the aid they need is monetary. Do not under any circumstances buy into this type of email. Once these hackers have accessed your address book, they will send similar requests to everyone in your address book. Call your friend and ask about it. You will find there is no problem and they can then choose to change their email address and have the old one closed. A spyware program would have disallowed this from the start.
Have you ever received a statement from your insurance company stating that they paid for a procedure that you did not have? Call them immediately and inquire about this erroneous information. It could be due to an employee entering wrongful information in your file or someone may have been able to access your medical insurance. With the high cost of medical expenses today, more and more people are using this way of getting the medical attention they need. If anything raises suspicion, notify your company right away.
So you have done everything that you can think of to protect your identity. What about all the people that have your name, address, and credit card numbers? Is your doctor, lawyer, or bank being as cautious as you are? These same people have your Social Security number and if a hacker has that, they can do a great deal of damage in a very short time. Even when they have done all the right things, employees having access to your information may make use of it for their own illegal purposes.
Copies of all documents in your possession that contain identifiable information should be kept in a secure locked place at your residence. In case of theft, this will give you easy access to your bank and credit card accounts to have them immediately closed. As far as hackers have come in regard to identity theft, nothing makes it easier for them than a lost wallet. Closing your accounts immediately will stop theft before it can occur.
While using your ATM, pay special attention to anyone that remains hovering around you. Thieves will use different means to get you pin number which then will allow them to get into your account. Another good idea is to mail all checks directly from your local Post Office and have any incoming funds sent by direct deposit to your bank. There are harsh penalties for the tampering of the U. S. Mail but thieves allow nothing to deter them. Shred any and all pertinent material and use passwords that would be considered impenetrable. A mix of letters, characters and numbers may be more difficult to remember but they are also the hardest ones to infiltrate.
The best advice is to use your common sense. If you see a piece of paper with identifying information on it, it can be sued to get into your profile. If it cannot be destroyed, use every safety precaution at your disposal to keep it out of the hands of thieves.
