Identity Theft Crisis

It’s the number one source of consumer complaints at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and unfortunately, it’s one of the simplest crimes to commit. Identity theft involves information from your daily life, from shopping, bill-paying, and even applying for a job. Thieves take advantage of everyday opportunities to discover your personal information, including your Social Security number (SSN), bank or credit card account numbers, income, name, address, or phone number, and use it to commit fraud or other crimes.

How can a stranger get to your information? According to the FTC, identity thieves may pose as legitimate representatives of an organization, as business professionals or agents of the government, conning you into revealing sensitive information. Common scams include impersonating employees from banks, credit card companies, Internet service providers, and utility companies. If someone calls you claiming to represent a legitimate organization, confirm this by calling the customer service number listed on your statement or bill.

Thieves may also use your place of employment to get the information they need. A co-worker may steal information from your employer; someone could hack into your company’s computer and copy employee records; or a criminal could resort to the old-fashioned method of bribing someone you work with for your information. Check with your employer to find out the company policy on securing your records and disposing of them when you’re gone.

If your employer is authorized to pull credit reports on employees or potential customers, someone could take advantage of this access to retrieve illegal reports. Criminals may also pose as employers, landlords, or collection agents to pull your credit information. It’s a good idea to order a copy of your credit report once a year to check for unauthorized entries.

Shredding your documents before you throw them away is also good idea, whether at work or at home. Identity thieves have been known to sift through garbage, in the trash can or at the dump, to find sensitive information.

The most common form of identity theft is credit card fraud. Technology has allowed criminals to begin stealing your credit or debit card numbers as you use the cards, “skimming” them with an information storage device. In addition, thousands of drivers’ licenses and credit and debit cards are stolen each year. Keeping your Social Security card in a secure location and safeguarding your purse or wallet while at work are necessary precautions.

Even your mail is a source for identity thieves, who may complete credit card applications in your name and go on a spending spree. After stealing your bank or credit card statements, tax information, or box of replacement checks, criminals are able to access your accounts and spend the funds in your name. They may even change the address on your existing account, diverting the bills to keep you from recognizing the problem until it’s too late. Being aware of your billing cycles can help you catch a discrepancy in the arrival of your statements.

Identity thieves have a variety of ways to use your information for their personal gain. They may shop for big-ticket items using your credit or bank account information and then sell the items for cash. With your SSN and date of birth, they can open new bank accounts or apply for lines of credit. In fact, banks have granted loans to criminals using stolen identities for purchases as large as cars.

Telephone or internet service can be set up using your SSN. Thieves can avoid impending eviction or accumulated debt by filing bankruptcy in your name. Perhaps the most emotionally traumatic, police could issue a warrant for you if a criminal was arrested using your name and failed to appear at a court hearing.

The ways that identity thieves have conceived to acquire your personal information are numerous, but your vigilance and heightened awareness can curb their ability to make you a victim. And, if you sustain credit damage, go to http://www.apscreen.com to find out what you can do about it.

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This whole identity theft thing gives you the creeps, right? You’re not only infuriated by, but terrified of the thought of somebody sifting through your trash, brazenly stealing your mail, or hijacking your wallet not for your money so much as your social security number. You may even feel helpless.

While identity theft is a serious issue, there are things you can do to reduce your risk of being an identity theft victim. The following is a list of just a few things you can do to protect your identity:

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Protect your kids from the risks associated with identity theft. Children often fall prey to identity fraud, and the numbers of young victims grows every year, according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). There are several simple tips you can use to protect kids from identity theft.

Why Kids Are Targeted by Identity Thieves

Kids are easy targets for identity thieves. By law, children can?t apply for credit cards, loans or other lines of credit until they are 18. That gives identity thieves many opportunities to steal a child?s identity and use it freely to open lines of credit. In addition to random strangers stealing a child?s identity, unfortunately, unscrupulous family members also often target them.

Children Feel Effects of Identity Theft When They Venture Out in the World

Children who are identity theft victims feel the pain inflicted by the crime when they try to establish a credit history. Applying for a loan or a credit card, children and their families are often shocked to learn that their child has a poor credit history, even though they?ve never had a line of credit. A poor credit score can prevent kids from getting the jobs they want, obtaining credit cards, loans and more. Although justice is on their side, it can take years to clean up a lifetime of identity theft.

Protect Your Kids from Becoming a Victim of Identity Theft

Adults can protect kids from identity theft by taking a few safety precautions. Shredding paperwork from doctors and other entities that list a child?s Social Security number or date of birth can help protect children from identity fraud. Credit card and loan offers that arrive in the mail addressed to children should be addressed with the company sending the offer, so they know that they are sending items to minor children. Social Security cards and other personal information about children should be safely stored to avoid the risk of identity fraud.

Children Identity Fraud Repair: What to Do if the Worst Should Happen

If a child becomes a victim of identity fraud, there are a few things you can do to help them repair their credit history and regain their identity. Their Social Security number should be changed and a police report should be filed immediately. Credit card companies, lenders and collections agencies associated with the phony identity should be notified immediately about the identity theft.

Reduce the risk of identity theft with credit monitoring . Credit monitoring provides an added layer of protection against identity fraud with up to date information about credit scores and details of unusual activities on a credit report.

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Identity theft existed well before the Internet became established, but the ease with which information can be harvested from the World Wide Web has seen the medium used more in those types of crime. However, it is still traditional methods that account for most identity theft crimes, such as stolen or lost purses or wallets.

In addition to identity theft there is also the phenomenon known as identity fraud; however, there is a subtle difference. The latter involves using stolen or misappropriated documents to obtain goods or services by deception, whereas identity theft involves assuming the identity of another person without their consent, and once established as the victim then obtaining goods and services in that person?s name.

Another popular way for someone committing fraud to pass themselves off as someone else is to produce documents containing the victim?s name and address, such as domestic bills, bank statements and other correspondence. Regardless of how the terms are coined there is very little difference when it comes to the impact it has on the victim. In extreme cases it can take years to recover from having your credit record trashed by identity fraud, but at the very least having your identity compromised is distressing and extremely inconvenient.

There are plenty of actions that you can take to maximise the chances that you will never become a victim of identity theft or fraud. If you do unwittingly become a victim having access to identity fraud assistance could save you an awful lot of grief.

But, prevention is better than cure. First, buy a shredder. Avoid falling victim to the sort of scam where your sensitive documents – such as bank statements and utility bills – are stolen from your rubbish and used by the thief or other third party to impersonate you. In fact, do all that you can to ensure they are destroyed by shredding, before they are thrown away.

Secondly, make sure that when you are out and about you take good care of your handbag or wallet. Never leave it unattended, as this can only lead to the potential of it being stolen and your driving licence and credit cards may be used to perpetrate identity fraud.

Lastly, make sure that you are aware of the latest Internet phishing scams and never give out your banking or other information to people you do not know. Never share any passwords for online banking and try to avoid logging on to such services in public areas such as libraries and Internet cafes, as you have no idea about the security of the devices that you will be using.

If you follow such basic tips then you can significantly prevent the easy routes available to steal your identity.

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Identity authentication is a component of identifying identity fraud risk. Advances in technology through fingerprint biometric services have lead to biometric verification becoming a potential tool in identity verification.

What is identity authentication? The authentication process involves validating the identity presented is the actual person. It goes further than typical identity verification and seeks a confirmation that the person presenting the ID accurately is the person being represented by the ID.

Beyond Paper Identification:

The problem with paper identification is it is not tamperproof. Efforts have been made by states to increase security of state-issued ID cards; however, those looking to perpetrate fraud have been able to keep up with the technology changes. How can you keep up with a criminal element dedicated to staying one step ahead of paper identification cards? The answer, you need to change the identity verification process to an identity authentication process.

Examine the below identity verification system. If a system was able to achieve the below, what would the result be for potential identity fraud risk?

- Electronically capturing photo IDs.

- Detecting false or tampered IDs.

- Connecting IDs to fingerprints.

- Verifying identity.

- Automatically verifying age.

- Retaining comprehensive transaction history.

The above demonstrates the need for comprehensive identity authentication systems to help mitigate identity fraud risk. A secondary requirement becomes apparent when you look at the steps required by comprehensive identity authentication systems–the need for speed of validation. As a result the system needs to be both accurate and efficient. How can this be achieved in point of service situations?

Multiple Verifications Mitigate Identity Fraud:

There is a statistical assumption that the more verification checks performed, the better your chances are that you are mitigating identity fraud risk. To perform multiple verifications will require an additional expenditure of time. To keep the process of identity authentication accurate and efficient, what verifications checks need to be performed? In the previously list there was an item called “Connecting IDs to fingerprints,” this verification action can help hold the key to identity authentication.

Connecting IDs to Fingerprints, the Role of Fingerprint Biometric Verification:

Advances in fingerprint biometric technology have resulted in the ability to conduct biometric verification. TrueID from ChoicePoint has the ability to capture and link a fingerprint to a single ID record. The result is a mitigation of identity fraud risk and fraud risk resulting from an individual attempting to use multiple identities.

Fingerprint Biometric technology provides identity resolution, or the ability to match one person to one identity. The ability to find identity fraud patterns also prevents individual users from making multiple ID fraud attempts. A final benefit of fingerprint biometrics is that the fingerprint images are stored and available to law enforcement and prosecution of identity fraud suspects.

Uses of Biometric Verification:

The ability for fingerprint biometrics to connect a single fingerprint to a single identity becomes desirable in various business applications. Biometric verification can mitigate identity fraud risk by linking a fingerprint to a single stored identity. This technology becomes desirable in situations where high security is required for identity authentication prior to new business being conducted. Applications such as opening a high-value new account or authenticating an identity through repeat transactions illustrate the need to implement biometric verification.

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Today, Identity fraud has become one of the most common thefts of the decade – It has been featured in different kinds of magazines and Television shows. It seems like each year the amount of cases being published increase drastically.

In America alone, over 27 million cases are being filed each year and it is still constantly increasing. It is also due to the fact that slowly most of the purchases are done through information – usually credit cards are the ones with high risk, since if they know all about your personal information they can easily use your card to purchase over the internet.

Now, in order to prevent Identity fraud I have listed the essential things you can do to prevent this from happening to you and your family. Keep in mind that if you follow these things you will prevent identity theft at least 90% of the time. So please take note of the information I am about to share with you.

1. Information Awareness

Now this is very essential, you should be extremely wary of the amount of information you are giving away to the public. It can be on the internet or hard copies of your identification documents.

So in order to be aware of the situation you just have to limit the amount of information you give out, especially on the internet. Don’t publish all of your information online.

Another thing is you should not allow anyone to copy or borrow your identification documents without proper reason.

Plus, always deal business with an official sanction of a company – Do not try to deal with individuals that don’t seem to have any official identifications, you can also check the person by calling up the company.

Shred any financial papers you receive before disposing of them in the trash. This includes any solicitation notices that you may receive for any credit cards or mail from other financial institutions.

Lastly, don’t bring your Social Security Card (or Identification number) with you unless it’s absolutely important.

2. Report Odd Credit Information

This is an extremely important part of preventing identity fraud. Most of the time, people who are involved in the cases think that they could be subjected to identity fraud problems, unfortunately they don’t follow their gut instinct to check.

The telltale signs are monthly expenses that show up in your credit card payment but they don’t provide any form of billing and check your credit card transactions to make sure that all transactions are made by you and if there is a discrepancy, immediately call the company to stop any fraud from continuing further.

And lastly, check your credit report at least once a year to make sure your information (and credit standing) is correct.

That’s why it is essential that you exercise these tips and relate them to your friends and family to prevent any of identity theft/fraud problem in the future.

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It is estimated that each day a number of individuals will have their identity stolen. Identity theft is a horrific problem that is sweeping the world. Identity theft is a crime, but in many cases it is hard to find a person to punish. For this reason, there are many lives that are turned upside down due to identity theft. While it may be difficult to associate good news with identity theft, there is some. Identity theft can often be prevented and if it should occur there are always ways to fight back.

The first step in preventing yourself from becoming a victim of identity theft is to know how it occurs. Identity theft most often occurs when a person has illegal obtained credit card numbers, bank account numbers, social security numbers, and other personal information that they have no right accessing. This information can be obtained by hacking into your computer, scamming you into providing the information, or even through your garbage.

The worst case of identity theft is when an individual obtains your social security number and drivers license. These items could allow a person to do just about anything. They could open new bank accounts, get new credit cards, buy a car, or even get a job in your name. This type of identity theft is hard to notice because a new address is often set up for all new accounts and purchases. It is not uncommon for an individual to not know that they have had their identity stolen until a copy of their credit report is requested.

Stealing credit card numbers is another form of identity theft that is having a negative impact on millions of individuals. When a person obtains your credit card number they can use it to purchase just about anything they want. Large purchases are often made in a small amount of time. This allows an individual to purchase items with your credit card and receive them at a fake location before you are likely to even notice the purchases on your bill.

Not all cases of credit card fraud and identity fraud can be prevented, but the majority of them can be. If you keep valuable personal information, including credit card and bank account numbers, on your computer then you encouraged to make sure that your computer is protected with up-to-date anti-virus software. This will help to prevent a computer hacker from getting your information. If you throw out your old credit card or bank statements you are encouraged to shred the documents first. This would make it virtually impossible for someone rummaging through your trash can to come up with anything valuable.

If you have your purse or wallet stolen you are encouraged to notify your credit card companies immediately. The same approach should be taken if you misplace your wallet or purse in public. After only few hours later your credit cards could be maxed out. Informing your bank and credit card companies of lost or stolen account information will help to guarantee that you will not be responsible for any purchases that were made on the stolen cards.

Why let yourself become a victim of credit card and identity fraud when it is so easy to prevent it? Keeping yourself aware of your surroundings and your finances is the best way to stay safe and keep your credit in good standing.

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Identity fraud is a growing problem in the UK with perpetrators using methods ranging from trawling refuse for copies of bank and utility statements, through to electronic theft of details via the internet. The consequences for a victim can be immense with huge debts run up as the fraudster opens bank accounts and credit accounts to obtain money in the victim’s name.

So what can people do about identity fraud? Firstly action can be taken by contacting the large credit referencing agencies such as Equifax or Experian and setting up a password on your personal data. This works by the agency first conducting a thorough review to verify your identity, then for a small fee they add a password to their databases containing your personal data. Once a bank or other financial services organisation enquires to verify an account at your current address (for example that a fraudster is trying to set up), they will find a password that the fraudster will be asked to verify – which of course they will not be able to. The upshot is that no one can set up a bank account or other financial account without knowing your password recorded on the databases – no matter how many copies of bank statements they have gathered from your refuse!

So great, as an individual you can protect your data and prevent someone defrauding you. But what if you are a landlord who is about to let a property to an individual? How do you know they are who they purport to be? Well, in a perfect world everyone will have secured their personal data and it won’t be a problem, but of course this is far from reality. So what is the solution for landlords? Really it is quite simple. There are credit checking agencies that specialise in identity verification, they have access to a wide range of databases that can check a prospective tenant’s history, verifying previous rental property address, assessing financial accounts linked to those addresses, and a range of other data that collectively verifies an individual’s identity. In short, it is always possible to protect and verify someone’s identity, never take risks that you will later regret!

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Putting measures into place to avoid an identity theft scam at your business probably does not cross your mind very much, if at all, especially if you consider your business to be a quote-unquote small business; however, complaint boards all over the Internet are packed full of complaints related to identity theft and fraud. If you think crooks only target individuals or large corporations, then think again. In reality, even small businesses can be the target of identity fraud. People can use your business identity or secure your list of customers in order to rip off the public or perform other criminal activities both online and offline. Here are some ways in which you can protect your business and your customers from such scams, frauds and ripoffs.

Getting to know how criminals operate is a good way on how to avoid identity theft fraud at your business. Although the most publicized cases of corporate identity thefts being reported are about crooks stealing customer information from the database of large companies, hacking is not the only threat to your business. In fact, cheating and getting access from inside your system is also a big headache. Some online scam artists will try to rip off your customers by pretending to be representatives of your company or even phish information or identities of your present employees to get to you. There are things that criminals can do to twist the arms of your employees, even your most trusted ones, just to squeeze the information they want regarding you, your customers and your business.

So, what can you do on how to avoid identity theft fraud at your business? Make sure that you invest in good software that will prevent viruses, malwares and spywares from entering your company?s computer database. You need such security measures to ensure that you are protected from outside hackers and ripoffs. In order to protect yourself from the inside, you need to be more careful with the people you hire. Also, take the time to inform your employees about the growing threat of identity theft fraud and tell them how they can detect criminals trying to phish information from them. In addition, it is important that you do not allow personal emails, external messaging applications and other personal activities on your company?s computer network. Perhaps if your employees understand how these things are threatening, they won’t feel as if you are attempting to stifle them personally.

Financial liability is one of the biggest impacts of being a victim of corporate identity theft. To protect yourself from financial repercussions and scams, you should find an assurance agency that will help cover loses and other related expenses in case problems regarding hacking and identity theft arise.

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The bear in your campground analogy:

Perfect protection is unreachable but you can be better protected than most people with reasonable efforts. The “Bear in Your Campground” story applies here. When a bear comes into your campground, you can’t outrun the bear but you can outrun the other campers. The fact is that there is no way you can be sure to outrun the thieves either, but you can outrun the other potential victims – and that may be enough. I will try to help you make the trade-offs that work for you.

There are lots of people out there making it easy to steal their identities. You don’t want to be one of them. There is a lot you can do without major expenditures and major changes in your lifestyle. The point of this book is to teach you what you can do and let you make intelligent trade-offs yourself of security versus cost and inconvenience.

Things to do right away:

The point of this is to get you off to a fast start, positioned to better protect yourself. Some of the things you should do right away include:

Review your last bank and card statements.

Be sure all listed transactions were authorized by a family member, don’t assume. Also check to see that you are not missing the most recent statement, as that might be a sign of account takeover. List each account and card on the Account and Card Inventory Form provided in the back of this book. Include on your list your divers license and ID cards from your employer, insurers, that would have to be replaced if your wallet was lost or stolen. This form will be an important tool for detection as well as recovery.

Order a credit report.

One report from each agency per year is now free. Some people get one each four months, on a revolving basis, so that they never have to pay for a report. Some request all three or each more often. This is one of those trade-offs of protection versus expense and effort. To order, go to the Annual Credit Report Service at www.annualcreditreport.com, call them at 877-322-8228, or contact a specific credit agency:

* Equifax: 800-685-1111 or www.equifax.com

* Experian: 888-397-3742 or www.experian.com

* Transunion: 800-888-4213 or www.transunion.com

Calendar the date when you want to order the next credit report. And note which agencies are next in rotation, if you are ordering one at a time.

When I first did this I found a debt listed that had been run up by my former wife. I called the bank and got them to take it off of my credit report. As reviewing your credit report is an ongoing habit, we will discuss what to do when the report arrives in the next section.

Install a locking mailbox or get a Post Office Box.

Incoming mail can provide a thief with credit cards, applications, checks, and various identifying information. I put up the first locking mailbox in my neighborhood. It cost $60 and a little time. But when one neighbor had a box of checks stolen and another lost incoming pay and dividend checks, I wasn’t the only one for long.

When my wife went out to run in the mornings, at least once a week she noticed all the unlocked mailboxes were hanging open. One day in the park I found all of a certain neighbor’s junk mail. But not those credit card offers and nothing that resembled account statements, or other financial or government mail – those were too valuable for the thieves to toss. What was going on was that groups of teens were cruising the streets making quick grabs into unlocked boxes. They sell “interesting” items to a broker. The broker sorts out the items by type and sells groups of like items to transaction specialists. Certain thieves pass bad checks, others use deposit slips, still others specialize in cards-related frauds.

P.O. boxes may be safer, if less convenient and more expensive, another trade-off. The bear might tear into your locked mailbox, but if the other campers have open jars of honey out front, then why would he bother you?

Get gel ballpoint pens for writing checks.

A thief can take a check from your outgoing mail, remove regular ballpoint pen ink with nail polish remover (protecting the signature, of course), and have a signed blank check – on your account.

The cheapest investment you can make is to buy a gel ballpoint pen and keep it clipped to your checkbook. Gel is a newer kind of ink which cannot be removed by washing. The point is to look for the word “GEL” on the pen, buy it, and use it for all your checks.

Get a shredder.

A crosscut or confetti style is best, as strips can be reconstructed. Anything with your social security number on it or containing personal data is fair game to the thieves when it hits your garbage bag or can. “Dumpster diving” is a profitable profession.

Things you don’t want fished from your trash include bank and card statements, old taxes, voided or old checks, deposit slips, credit applications you don’t want to complete, credit offers, and those checks the credit card companies send you to initiate low interest rate loans and balance transfers.

Change poor PINs and passwords.

They should be at least six numbers and/or characters. They should not be easy to guess or based on information which might be in your wallet. The first numbers a purse or wallet thief would try are parts of your birth date, phone number, SSN, and any other key number they find in you wallet. Realize that your SSN can be accessed by a large number of people. A thief might obtain it and try different parts of it in guessing your PIN even if they don’t find it in your wallet.

There are trade-offs here too.

* Multiples – If you always use the same password it is easy to remember but people at each site have access to it. So you also might want to use a unique password on banking sites. If you use the same ID and password on many sites you are exposing them to key employees of multiple companies.

* Complexity – Complex passwords may be hard to recall and tempt you to write them down in a handy spot.

* Real or made-up – To be extra careful, you might create and use an imaginary “mother’s maiden name”, as the real one could be researched. It is on your birth certificate, for example.

Set up a password on each bank and card account.

Use your Account and Card Inventory Form as a guide to contact each bank. Once set up, the password can be used by the bank to determine it is really calling them with a transaction such as an address change or funds transfer. If the only way they can identify you is by asking for personal data, your account is exposed to any thief who has obtained your data.

Remove any PINs or passwords written in your wallet / purse.

They could be a goldmine for a thief.

Secure any PIN and password list within your home.

Don’t leave them out, in a well labelled file in an unlocked file cabinet, on your computer in an easy to find file, or on a notebook PC that could be stolen.

Protect Social Security Numbers (SSN).

Remove them from your checks, driver’s license, resume, or other documents where it is not required. My employer forced their insurance companies to take our SSNs off of our group insurance cards.

Remove unneeded IDs from your wallet, purse, and car.

This will reduce the potential damage from theft and reduce the work you will have to do if theft does occur.

Protect your PC’s

Get and run anti-spyware and anti-virus programs and firewalls. Be sure to use the encryption option on wireless networks.

Protect Yourself – Avoidance Habits to Develop and Keep

Even as you complete the initial protection steps described in the prior chapter, you also need to start practicing on-going protective habits.

Review this list from time to time.

The first habit is to learn and repeat each of the others. Put “review the good habits list” on your calendar, as a reminder, until you regularly practice each of these good habits.

Protect your outgoing mail.

Taking outgoing mail can be lucrative for the thief in many ways.

* Applications – Applications for cards or loans can be “edited” by thieves so that they get the payoff and you get the collection calls.

* Checks – A check in the outgoing mail can be as good as gold to them. Even if you used a gel pen to prevent alteration of that check, the data on your check can be used to produce (or even order) perfectly valid looking checks that can be written by the thief that will clear and post against your checking account.

* Deposits – An outgoing deposit-by-mail is a double gift to the thief. Not only can they “edit” the checks to their specifications but they can use the deposit slip too. That scam goes like this: They go into your bank (probably a remotely located branch so they aren’t recognized) and hand the teller the deposit slip along with some bogus checks they printed up on their PC or have from a nearly zero balance account out of state. Then they ask for some cash back from the deposited funds. They are usually handed the cash, since it is less that the funds already available on your account. When the deposited checks bounce back against your account, the thief has been gone for two or three days.

* Data sources – Various other sorts of mail (like car registrations, tax forms) can help the thief build a file on you which will later be used to open accounts in your name. You can count on him running up overdrafts and bad debts in your good name.

For all of these reasons, place outgoing mail only in secure mail boxes, not the office OUT box and not your personal mailbox. The big blue USPS boxes are pretty well bear-proof.

Be wary at ATMs and points of purchase

The ideal situation for a thief is to have both your card and your PIN. They will go to quite a bit of trouble to get them. If they can copy the data from the magnetic stripe on the back of the card they can create an exact copy of your card. Even with only plain white card stock they can use the magnetic stripe data to create a “white card” that will work perfectly well on an ATM, gas pump or other unmanned locations.

* Getting your PIN – Watch out for “shoulder surfing”. Be aware of anyone watching you enter your PIN at an ATM or point of purchase terminal. Some thieves even use a video camera to record your entry from a short distance or hide a camera to record and transmit your finger movements on the keypad.

* Getting your data – Your card’s magnetic stripe data can be read by one of three types of small skimmer devices.

* One is a portable device that can be taped to a waiter’s arm. They go to a private space, roll up their sleeve, swipe the card, then go about their normal business.

* Another kind is mounted under the counter. You won’t see the card swiped but it will disappear from view momentarily.

* Some thieves go so far as to install a skimmer on a bank’s ATM. These look like part of the machine but they are unauthorized “add-ons” that read the magnetic stripe on the card before passing it on to the real ATM card reader.

* Getting your card – Some thieves us a device known as a “Lebanese loop” to steal your card at the ATM. The loop is a strip of plastic they stick into the cred reader slot. Your card is caught by it and jams. After you leave in frustration the thief uses a tool to pull out the loop and your card with it.

Use safer ways to make payments.

It is safer to use credit over debit cards, as they provide better protection against fraudulent charges and their spending limit is most likely below the amount than can be taken from your deposit (checking or savings) account. Once money has been taken from your deposit account, it may take some time to resolve the issue with the bank. In the mean time you may not have access to all of your funds. A credit card balance, on the other hand, you can simply not pay if you have lodged a legitimate complaint in the right manner.

Checks are relatively easy to manipulate. Even if gel ink is used the check can be scanned, the image manipulated, then printed (including the signature). It is remarkably easy for people to order checks on your account and have them sent to an address supplied by the thief. They just say they are you and have recently moved. Many check printers do nothing to verify the identity of the person placing the order, On-line bill paying is available from most banks and is far safer. Once you get used to it you will probably find it more convenient as well. Just be careful with your on-line ID and password.

Now obviously there are other kinds of risks in the world that need to be considered. Over use of credit cards, without regular full payments of the balance, can be a problem. To address this, some families use one card for debt and another for routine purchases. They look for a low-interest card for the first purpose and pay off the other each month, without exception.

Close old accounts.

An amazing number of accounts are sitting around the country in an inactive status. These are prime targets for the thief. If they send in or call in a change of address for the account they are set to strike. They can then run up a card balance, get checks printed and overdraft a deposit account, and set up new accounts related to the original.

After you try to close an account, note it on your Account and Card Inventory Form but don’t remove it until you see a credit report listing it as closed. It once took me five trys to get a card issues to actually cancel my card account.

Establish good habits for new accounts.

Ask what the statement date will be. Establish passwords when you set up the account, as described in Chapter 2. Add new accounts to the Account and Card Inventory Form as soon as you get them. Watch for the first statement and review it carefully.

Avoid common mistakes

Doing the things described above is important. But it is equally important that you avoid common mistakes.

* Don’t give out data – Incoming-phone calls or e-mail can be a source of data to the thief. They can later use that data to pretend to be you while on the phone to a bank, check printer, or loan company. Once they are accepted as you, they can run any number of scams:

* Take over your account by changing the address of record. They can then transact without your finding out about the activity.

* Set up a new account, card, or loan and link it to the existing accounts. They then are positioned to make transfers as well as play on your good credit.

Another form of thief’s data request is “phishing” e-mails. These can seem to be from your bank, card company, brokerage, or other trusted financial institution. They send you to an apparently valid web site that asks for your ID and PIN data. They can be very realistic, with your bank’s logo, the look and feel of their web site and even seem to have taken you to the familiar site.

Don’t ever provide ID or PIN’s as a response to e-mails or calls. Call the bank and report the e-mail. Go to your bank’s Web site only in your usual manner, by typing in their URL or clicking from your browser’s Favorites or Bookmarks list.

* Don’t leave data around – Don’t leave the customer copy of a charge slip on the table after paying for a meal or making a store purchase. Although the law now requires that only the last digits of your card number appear on the slip, some older systems are still out there which have the whole card number. This applies also to carbon copies and the carbon sheets themselves.

*Don’t write your PIN or password on anything that isn’t very secure. This includes your house or unsecured PC file.

* Don’t use your SSN unnecessarily – Don’t put your SSN on your checks, driver’s license, resumes or anything else, if you can avoid it. Don’t give it out unless absolutely necessary. It is legally required in relation to any taxable income source. Merchants may not choose to grant you credit if you do not reveal it, it’s your choice (and theirs) in that case. Some people make up a number. This ploy has risks that the number will be found to be invalid or, worse, that the number belongs to someone else. The other person may not have good credit or may even be wanted by law enforcement. You don’t want to appear to be an ID thief yourself.

*Don’t ignore early signs – A common mistake is to take lightly the early signs of identity theft. The quicker it is caught, the sooner it will be resolved and at the least cost in effort and dollars. That is the subject of the next chapter.

This article is from a larger workbook available at www.yourIDsite.com

Copyright Jim G. George

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