Identity thieves will make off with unsuspecting victim’s personal information and, use it without their knowledge. This may result in huge amounts of debt piling up in the name of the victim or worse, having crimes committed in their names. It is important to take steps to have identity theft protection. In this regard one should remember to protect one’s social security number, fight phishing and not take the bait, not trashing your identity documents, keeping control of personal financial information, protecting one’s computer from virus and spies, checking bank statements as also bills, and stop pre-approved credit offers. Obviously, protecting one’s social security number should be number one priority and, it should not be carried about in one’s wallet. A common ploy used by scam artists is to go phishing for victims, using the pretence of being a bank, store or government agency. It can be done over the phone or through regular mail as well as through emails. It is imperative not to give one’s personal information unless one makes contact and, never respond to requests to verify account numbers or passwords.

Protect All Your Personal Information

Another identity theft protection measure one can take is to ensure that one shreds or tears up papers containing personal information, before trashing them. One should always shred credit card offers as well as convenience checks that one is not using.

Some states such as California require that banks as well as other financial service companies receive a customer’s permission before divulging personal information with outside entities. As another identity theft protection measure, the customer also has the right to limit sharing of their personal information with the companies’ affiliates.

One should remember that for identity theft protection, one needs to protect personal information residing on one’s personal computer and, remember to use strong passwords that are easy to remember and, hard for others to guess. In addition, one should use firewalls, virus as well as spyware protection software and, keep them updated regularly.

Also, for identity theft protection, one should open credit card bills and bank statements without delays and, check carefully for unauthorized usage and, report any that one finds, immediately. In case the bills get delayed in arriving, one should call the company and make enquiries because somebody may have changed contact information in order to conceal fraudulent charges. Pre-approved credit cards are tempting targets for identity thieves and, one should stop them by removing one’s name from credit bureau marketing lists. These are some useful means of ensuring that one has identity theft protection and, if followed diligently, should prevent one from becoming the next victim of identity thief.

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Different countries have dedicated agencies engaged in fighting identity theft and fraud cases and, complaints may be made to agencies in different countries to locate as well as apprehend fraudsters that may be operating from foreign shores. In addition, various agencies provide helpful information regarding what needs to be done in case of identity theft and fraud. For instance, the Social Security office has online identity theft and fraud fact-sheets that provide information that is helpful in case one’s social security number gets lost or stolen. A common form of interaction over the Internet is that of social networking that allows people to post information about them as well as communicate with others through forums, interest groups and, more. This may be a fun way of meeting new people but, also exposes one to identity thieves, hackers, con artists as well as other criminal elements.

To prevent the occurrence of identity theft and fraud, one should guard one’s financial as well as other sensitive information, view social networking sites as billboards in cyberspace, be extra cautious about meeting new people through cyber dating, take care not to click links and download attachments without knowing their source and, also protect one’s computer with the help of spam filters, anti-virus software and anti-spyware software.

Types of Identity Theft and Fraud

The National Fraud Information Center is a site that provides visitors with information related to different fraud practices and imparts knowledge about how to spot and report instances of identity theft and fraud. Another agency one can check for help with identity theft and fraud is Privacy Rights Clearinghouse which has comprehensive fact sheets regarding coping with identity theft as well as reducing the risk of fraud.

According to them, there are two types of identity theft and fraud which are “account takeover” and “application fraud. Account takeover happens when the thief gets hold of existing credit card account information and begins to shop using these stolen cards. Application fraud occurs as a form of ‘true name fraud” in which the thief uses the social security number as well as other identifying information and, opens a new account in the victim’s name. This gives them a head start and, victims realize the fraud much later, when the monthly account statement arrives.

No doubt, one cannot prevent identity theft and fraud and, because of lax credit industry practices, criminals get away with a lot of theft and fraud and, leave victims counting their losses in dismay. One need to take adequate precautions such as reducing the number of debit or credit cards one opens, keep passwords as well as PINS secure, protect one’s social security number as well as protect one’s computer by installing firewalls, so that hackers cannot access sensitive information from your hard drive. Taking adequate precautions will certainly help reduce the risk of becoming a victim of identity theft and fraud.

Read more on Identity theft and fraud: a Rising Criminal Trend…

In the present times, the fight against identity theft is becoming stronger while, at the same time, the rate of such crimes is also increasing. A new type of internet piracy has surfaced in the form of phishing, which means internet pirates are fishing for personal information such as account numbers, passwords, Social Security numbers as well as other bits of confidential information. In the fight against identity theft, one must ensure not to provide personal information when replying to unsolicited requests, and not provide passwords over the phone or when replying to unsolicited internet requests. In the fight against identity theft, one should also take care not to click links contained in emails that are of dubious nature as it could contain a virus that would contaminate your computer.

Keep Personal Information Away From Unauthorized Persons

Fight identity theft by not being intimidated by callers or emails that warn of severe consequences if one does not respond immediately and, need to provide personal information. In case one is certain of the identity of the contact, it is advisable to visit their website by typing in their website address rather than clicking on a link contained in their email. You can also fight identity theft by acting immediately on realizing that you have become a victim of identity theft and, place fraud alerts on your credit files as well alert financial institutions and, also monitor your account statements by giving them careful scrutiny. In case you receive suspicious emails or phone calls, you should get in touch with the Federal Trade Commission over the internet or call them directly. They can help alert law enforcement agencies and, get on the trail of the identity thieves.

With the widening spectrum of identity thefts that are believed to be affecting one in every ten Americans, the need to fight identity thefts is becoming more urgent than ever before.

In this continuing fight against identity theft, one should pay special attention to old documents such as paid bills, bank statements as also receipts and, either store them safely or, shred them before trashing them.

In case of a change of address, ensure that your bank and utility companies are notified since wrongly sent mail could present an opportunity to fraudsters. Also ensure that accounts that are not required or when one stops using a particular credit card, that these are closed and should not be lying dormant. While fighting identity theft, keep you’re PIN and password safe and, they should be easy to remember and, not be written down on scraps of paper or kept in a wallet or purse from where they may get lost or be stolen.

The fight against identity theft affects everyone and, with proper care and, even though one cannot be 100 percent secure, it will reduce the risk of becoming a victim and, will also make the life of fraudsters that much more difficult. It may mean that they will need to look elsewhere and look for other easier game.

Read more on Fight Identity Theft: Stop Them Before They Find You…

Before we go into how we can avoid identity theft, let us see what identity theft means. Identity theft is mostly defined as a state where another person uses your name to appropriate gains due to you – this could be anything from abusing your credit cards to usurping your medical insurance or bank balance, or committing crimes in your name. We are often not aware that we leave behind us a trail of vital information, which literally invites miscreants to pick it up and misuse it. How many times you have written your full name, security number and phone number on the back of the pizza payment check? Now, sit and think logically how many people would have access to that information before the check is deposited.

Then, you will have the bank personnel who will have access to your account number as well. Can you realize how inviting it can be to know the details you have mentioned? If that check falls into the hands of any unscrupulous person, you will be wide open for identity theft whereby your bank can be cleared within minutes.

How to Avoid Identity Theft?

Basically one word will do here – careful. If you are careful, you will be able to sidestep a good number of traps and avoid identity theft effectively. The following guidelines would be helpful:

1. Keep all the critical information (it is even better if your keep all your information) concealed. Do not write your driver license number or social security number anywhere, lest people will copy it and use it. This is particularly important when it comes to checks. People tend to write all kind of identity information right on the back of the checks. You should rather give only your phone number and if the bank needs further identification or verification, they will call you up.

2. Never give any information over the phone. How do you know that the person at the end of the line is a genuine person? If the bank is calling you, ask the name of the person and inform that you will give the information in person, or send it through someone you authorize on your behalf.

3. Never give your financial details for buying things over the Internet.

Whenever you like something, check out the website (name of the enterprise) with the BBB or Better Business Bureau to see whether they are genuine. Unless you do this, you might be feeding your financial information into a clone website. This is one of the most popular methods to steal people’s identity; hence, you should be very careful about what you are doing and with whom you are interacting to avoid identity theft.

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