IDENTITY THEFT ARTICLE

IDENTITY THEFT ARTICLE

You 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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A VIEW ON SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER
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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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HOW TO USE SAFE CREDIT CARED
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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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HOW TO PREVENT FROM C.C. FRAUD
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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.

posted by Rajendra Gupta @ 8:12 AM