Protection from Identity Theft Begins with You

Identity theft is a common crime in our age of electronic information. It seems the more convenient internet commerce becomes for consumers, the more opportunities arise for identity thieves to gain access to our personal information and use it for unscrupulous means. It has become essential for all of us to make protection from identity theft a priority in our lives, just like locking our front doors at night or keeping our checkbooks in a safe place. Just as house and financial security begins at home, protection from identity theft starts with you. Knowledge is the First Step in Protection from Identity Theft Before you can protect yourself from something, you need to be knowledgeable about the situation. Protection from identity theft starts with understanding how thieves will try to get their hands on your personal information. The first stop may very well be to your trash can searching for documents that have not been shredded. Have you ever tossed an offer for a credit card without tearing up the application first? That application can be a gold mine to an identity thief. The next place he might look is your mailbox. Do you place outgoing mail, including bills with checks in them, in your home mailbox? This is another big opportunity for a thief to help himself to your personal information – and your bank account. An identity thief might even call you directly and pretend to be someone that you would be willing to share information with, such as your bank or internet provider. You will protect yourself from identity theft if you refuse to give out account or social security numbers over the phone lines or email. A thief may also gain access to your personal computer which will give him a treasure box full of information that he can use to benefit himself. Anti-virus software and firewalls that are updated regularly will help protect you from this identity thief. Finally, a potential thief might buy your information from someone who is out to make a quick buck, like a store clerk that has access to your credit card and scans it before returning it to you. Whenever you use a credit card to make a purchase in a store, keep your eye on your card and make sure that it does not get out of your sight. Identity thieves have many ways to access your personal information and establish new identities using your name. Fortunately, you have many opportunities to protect yourself from identity theft by being smart and being careful.

3 Ways to Help Prevent Identity Theft

Identity theft is not a new phenomenon that has recently plagued our society. It has always been there as you may have seen in movies depicting several decades ago like Catch Me If You Can starring. . .

January 31, 2006: Boston Globe and Telegram and Gazette Circulate Customer Credit Card Numbers by Mistake
The Boston Globe and The Worcester Telegram and Gazette, mistakenly sent out slips of paper with the credit card data of up to nearly a quarter million subscribers.

Identity Theft News at 02-10-2010, 10:05

July 02, 2005: Colorado Attorney General and FTC head affected by card fraud
FTC Head, Deborah Platt Majoras and Colorado Attorney General, John Suthers are the latest victims of card fraud.

August 03, 2005: Arrests in nationwide ID theft ring - over 250 charges of fraud
Arrests have been made in connection with a nationwide ID Theft ring that reportedly stole hundreds of thousands of dollars.

December 31, 2005: Fashion Model Peele faces charges of ID Theft
Model Beverly Beele who appears in the movie Sweet Friggin Daisies as well as in a George Michael video and several magazine ads has been arrested for identity theft.

October 22, 2005: Arrest in New England Credit Card Skimming and Bank Fraud Case
An arrest has been been in a credit card skimming ring involving waiters in the New England Area and in a Bank fraud ring.

June 03, 2005: Credit Card Data belonging to 80,000 Justice Department Employees Stolen
Credit card data for about 80,000 Justice Department employees went missing from an Omega World Travel office in Fairfax, VA.