How to Protect Yourself Against Identity Theft and What to Do If You’re a Victim
The key to protecting yourself from identity theives is safeguarding your information through diligently protecting your privacy.
There’s no way to completely guarantee protection against identity theft, but there are a number of things you can to to help foil frausters who are seeking to prey of your. Here are some simple steps you can take to protect your identity:
1. Keep your personal information in a safe place. Unless you need to use them don’t carry your social security card, birth certificate or or passport on your person. Make copies and secure the originals in a safe place (strong box, safety deposit box or locked cabinet). If you should lose any of these documents, immediately contact the appropriate government agency.
2. Properly dispose of financial records, statements and receipts. Shred, tear up or burn anything containing your personal information: credit card and bank account and brokerage statements, solicitations and other documents that contain private financial details.
3. Protect your postal mail. Quickly remove mail from your mailbox, getting a locking box (or a P.O. box) so fraudsters can’t steal credit card invitations or financial date. Never place outgoing bill payments and personal checks in your home’s mail box. Always mail them directly from the post office or another secure location (with outgoing office mail, etc.).
4. Protect your Social Security and state license/IDnumber. Never carry your Social Security card with you (or any other item that has your SSN on it such as a health insurance card or employee ID). NEVER write or have your SSN or license number printed on your personal checks.
5. Avoid leaving a paper trail. Always take gas station, ATM or credit card and file or destroy them (NEVER leave them behind).
6. When ordering new checks, never have them mailed to you…always pick them up at the bank.
7. When in restaurants, coffee shops and bars, never allow your credit card to be take aout of your view. If you have any concerns about the security of your card, pay your bill with cash.
8. Know who you’re dealing with. Whenever anyone contacts you asking for private identity or financial information, make no response other than to find out who they are, what company they represent and the reason for the call. If you think the request is legitimate, contact the company yourself and confirm what you were told before revealing any of your personal data.
9. When creating PINa and other passcodes, NEVER use the last four digits of your Social Security number, your birthdate, your middle name, mother’s maiden name or consecutive numbers. ALWAYS use passwords that have combinations or numbers and letters.
10. Be aware or and never respond to questionable email messages that appear to be from your bank, brokerage, eBay or PayPal. “Phishing” scemes are commonly used to get you to visit the scammers’ Web site, which looks like the real thing. These emails are the work of master con artists seeking to steal your personal information to commit identity theft. For details, visit: www.antiphishing.org.
11. Have your name removed from target marketers’ lists. In addition to being added to the national Do-Not-Call registry (www.donotcall.gov), you can also reduce junk mail by opting out of credit card solicitations.
12. When asked for your social security number or driver’s license number by salespeople, insurance companies, utilities, etc., ask if it is absolutely necessary that you disclose this information. Inquire about their privacy policy and what you can do to ensure they don’t share your information with a third party.
13. Never give out your financial details (SSN, credit/debit card number, etc.) over the phone, by mail, or online unless you have an establish business relationship with party you’re dealing with.
14. Thouroughly check your financial statements on a regular basis (monthly, if possible). Review credit card and bank statements each month for any signs of suspicious activity or fraud. Inquiry about or report ANY descrepancies IMMEDIATELY.
15. Routinely monitor your credit report. Obtain copies of and carefully review your credit report (available for free at www.annualcreditreport.com) at least once annually. Consider subscribing to a credit protection service, which quickly alerts you whenever a change to your credit report occurs.
What to do if you are an identity theft victim
Your first course of action should be to immediately call the security or fraud department of your bank and credit card companies and report suspicious activity. Acting fast will increase the chances that the criminal will be caught and limit the financial impact.
Quickly contact the fraud departments of all three major credit reporting bureaus. Explain to them that you are a victim of identity theft, request a “fraud alert” be placed in your file, and ask that any creditors call you before opening any new credit accounts or making changes to existing accounts.
Equifax
Call 800-525-6285 or write: P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
Experian
Call 888-EXPERIAN (397-3742) or write: P.O. Box 9532, Allen, TX 75013
TransUnion
Call 800-680-7289 or write: Fraud Victim Assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92634
File a police report. One of the best ways for the authorities to bring these culprits to justice and to prevent future fraud is through sharing information about identity theft crimes.
Contact the Federal Trade Commission have a fraud alert placed on your name and identity. FTC: 877-IDTHEFT (438-4338).
Report cases on online fraud and email phishing to the FBI Internet Fraud Complaint Center at www.ifccfbi.gov.
Be sure to keep keep accurate records of everything you do clear up the fraud, including copies of ALL written correspondence and records of any telephone calls amde or received (time, date, name of the person you spoke with, notes, etc.).
