IDENTITY THEFT ARTICLE
IDENTITY THEFT ARTICLEYou can't control what other people do with your information, but you can take a few preemptive measures of your own. Here are the guidelines:
Keep your Social Security number to yourself. Don't give it to folks who don't need it, and know that many people who don't need it will ask for it. If you have a driver's license, never opt to use your Social Security number as your license number as well.
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Remember to shred. Enron and Andersen may have recently revealed the darker side of document shredding. But if you're tossing old tax returns, bank statements, or other documents that contain the information hungry identity thieves crave, shredding is the only way to go. A crosscut paper shredder works best, according to the Identity Theft Resource Center.
Get your credit report at least once a year. Call the three main credit bureaus, Equifax (1-800-685-1111), Experian (1-888-397-3742) and Transunion (1-800-888-4213) and ask that they mail you a copy of your credit report. Make sure there are no surprises, and that you can account for all the activity on that report.
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Opt out. Thieves use mailed pre-approved credit offers and the "convenience checks" that often accompany them to get a credit card quickly. According to the postmaster general, 30 percent of convenience checks get used fraudulently. If you want fewer pre-approved credit offers in your mailbox, you can call (800) 5-OPT-OUT and ask them to remove your name and address from the mailing list.
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Tell your bank, health insurer, and others not to share. Call the companies and services you deal with regularly and tell them not to share your information with their affiliates.
Use common sense! Don't have conversations about your bank account or credit in public. Deposit mail in a locked mailbox, ideally inside the post office itself. Pay attention to your billing cycles, use complicated ATM passwords, memorize your Social Security number (so you don't have to show the card in public) and be cautious about who has access to information in your home.
A VIEW ON SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER
A VIEW ON SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERWith just your name, Social Security number and birth date, identity thieves are often limited only by their creativity. They can go on a shopping spree using credit cards in your name, take out large sums of money at the bank, and apply for health insurance, cell phone service or even a new job as your financially irresponsible clone. And it can take years to set the record straight.
You'll never entirely erase your chances of falling prey to identity thieves. But you can lessen your vulnerability.
If merchants wants to run a credit check on you, ask that they do so without your Social Security number. Smith suggests politely trying this a few times, noting in his experience, some merchants have been willing to bend. "See if it goes through," he said. "If they say 'No,' go elsewhere."
For Another Article Click HereIDENTITY THEFT ARTICLEOr Continued for this ArticleThe truth is, in most instances, a Social Security number is not required to pull up your credit report. "It's just one piece of identifying information," said Diane Terry, the director of the fraud victims assistance department at TransUnion, one of the three major credit bureaus. "If we can identify it without the Social Security number...we can release it that way."
A merchant can pull your credit report with just your name and address, she said. To insure they pull up the right report, give your full name with middle initial, your current address as well as any other addresses you may have had in the past five years.
Question a business about its security practices. The Federal Trade Commission, which runs an identity theft program, suggests you ask four things: why your Social Security number is needed, how it will be used, what law requires you to provide it and what will happen if you don't.
For Another Article Click HereHOW TO PREVENT FROM C.C. FRAUDOr Continued for this ArticleNever write your Social Security number on a personal check. Some stores may say they require it to accept your check. But "they don't need your Social Security number," said attorney Naomi Lefkovitz of the FTC. And if they're using it for identification purposes they can select some other way, she said, such as asking for your phone number or a photo ID.
Don't give it to a video rental store. Why some video stores request Social Security numbers is a mystery to Lefkovitz, Terry and Social Security Administration spokeswoman Carolyn Cheesum. Both Terry and Cheesum have refused to give their numbers in such a situation and suggest you do the same. The same goes for health clubs.
For Another Article Click HereHOW TO USE SAFE CREDIT CAREDOr Continued for this ArticleAsk for a new password or account number. Often, Lefkovitz said, businesses use your Social Security number as your ID number. Ask that they use a random number instead. This strategy worked for her when she applied for insurance. And don't give your mother's maiden name either, which companies often use as a password, she said.
HOW TO PREVENT IDENTITY THEFT OF YOUR CREDIT CARD
HOW TO PREVENT IDENTITY THEFT OF YOUR CREDIT CARD
Though the credit card companies and law enforcement have not noticed any fraudulent use of the cards affected, that doesn't mean there may not be fraudulent use in the future, security experts said. Often, when credit card accounts are hacked, account numbers and other information obtained may be sold to others who, in turn, may use that information to make unauthorized purchases.
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The card companies have zero-liability policies, which protect the card holder from responsibility for any unauthorized charges or fraudulent use. But that doesn't mean they'll necessarily contact you if your account was affected. Some might, but they are not under any obligation to. Consumer advocates recommend that you be vigilant in checking your credit card statement for any charges you did not make. The banks that spoke to CNNfn and CNN/Money said they also would be monitoring the affected accounts for fraud.
If you find any charges you didn't make or simply want to confirm the status of your account, contact your credit card issuer. (In the case of a MasterCard or Visa, you should contact the bank that issued your card. In the case of American Express and Discover, you should contact them directly.)
Calling may be a good first move, but you may also need to alert the company in writing if there have been fraudulent charges. Check the issuer's billing-error reporting procedure. If you can't find it anywhere on your latest statement, ask the issuer how such reports should be handled.
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In some cases, your card issuer may take the initiative and alert you first. After it was notified by MasterCard last Friday, Citizens Bank, a financial institution serving the Northeast, shut down the accounts of 8,800 customers whose cards had been affected, bank spokeswoman Pamela Crawley said Monday. All the accounts were safe, she added.
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If 8 million card accounts were affected, and all those cards were canceled with new cards issued in their place, it would cost the credit card companies an estimated $200 million, according to credit card experts.
