Don’t Be a Victim of Identity Theft
Identity theft is a common occurrence in today’s society and many people that always thought that they never would be a victim of identity theft finally find their personal information compromised. While no one is immune from identity theft, here are some tips on how not to be a victim.
Credit Reports
One of the best strategies in finding out if your personal or financial information has fallen into the wrong hands is to make sure you request your credit report from the three reporting agencies at least once a year and preferably once every six months. The big three credit reports can tell you if a loan or credit card has been applied for and issued. You can easily go through your report to make sure that all loan and credit card requests are from you and not an unknown entity. There are even services from these major reporting agencies that will contact you every time a new application for a loan or credit card or a request for information has been made for a credit report. These services are usually very affordable costing less than $50 per year in most cases.
Online Security
One of the largest arenas for identity theft is the internet. It is extremely easy to hack and steal data from servers, databases and individual users. For instance, be aware of emails and phishing scams that request your personal information. It is important to note that whenever anyone asks you for information online, never send it in an email. If you receive an email that looks legitimate from your bank, credit card company, government agency, Paypal or Ebay, close the email and contact the business or organization directly.
Protect Your Identity
One of the reasons that identity theft is so rampant is because people are so accustomed to giving practically anyone that asks their personal information. Be aware of any individual or business that requests your personal information (i.e. credit card application booths, free vacation offers, etc). Be especially reluctant to give your personal information when a business or individual asks for your social security number, mother’s maiden name and birth date, unless of course you are at a government or financial institution. These three types of information are the keys to usually assuming a false identity.
When it comes to identity theft, knowledge is key in protecting yourself against criminals and hackers that would like to exploit your personal identity for crime and fraud.
