Identity Theft: Do You Know how to Protect Yourself?

Identity theft is a serious crime that can destroy your life. In order to protect yourself, it is important to guard your personal information. I was reminded of this not too long ago when I received a letter from my former health insurance carrier informing me that one of their company laptops was stolen with all my personal information in it.

Do you know how to safeguard your personal information so that you don’t fall victim to identity fraud? Here are 12 steps you can take to protect yourself from becoming the next victim:

1. Get your credit report and fix any errors. The reports are free once a year. You can get the reports from any of the three major credit bureaus: Equifax (www.equifax.com); Experian (www.experian.com) and TransUnion (www.transunion.com). It’s a good idea to space out the reports from each company so you can check your credit status a few times a year.

2. Protect your Social Security Number. Give it out only when absolutely necessary. Except for banks, employers or other government institutions, you are not legally bound to give your SSN to private businesses. Ask that they use a different number for identification purposes.

3. Monitor your monthly credit and bank statements very carefully. Check for any discrepancies and correct any errors immediately.

4. Shred everything. That means EVERTHING. Reconciled statements, pre-approved credit applications, bills or anything that has information on you should be shredded. Get a criss-cross shredder instead of a straight shredder. Thieves can and do rummage through the trash and take the time to put together straight-shredded documents.

5. Don’t leave a paper trail. There are still a lot of companies that have not stopped printing your whole account number and expiration date on receipts. Keep all credit, gas or ATM receipts in a safe place until you get home and remember to take them out of your wallet or purse.

6. Speaking of a paper trail, clean out your car. Don’t leave your important papers in there. Either take them out or lock the glove compartment.

7. When you sign the back of your credit or debit cards write, “check photo ID” in the signature block. Also, some banks now offer an option for a photo to be put on the card. If your bank offers a photo ID, get one put on your card.

8. Put your mail in the Post Office Box. Mail left in your box for the carrier can be stolen and used by thieves to get your personal information.

9. Shop secure online. Make sure all charges are handled through an encrypted mode or through a secure site. Also, look for either the BBB online seal or the Trust-e symbol before purchasing.

10. Know how your personal information is used. Make sure that the sites you shop on have a privacy policy - and read it. If you have questions about the policy, don’t be afraid to ask for an explanation.

11. Keep your personal information private. Never give your Social Security Number, bank account numbers or credit/debit card numbers to telephone or email solicitors. Some thieves are tricky and will send emails that look like legitimate sites (such as paypal) in order to garner your information.

12. Finally, consider joining LifeLock which offers proactive ID theft protection. As a matter of fact, they are so confident of their service, the CEO, Todd Davis, has his Social Security Number on several pages of their website! I’ve signed up for it. I haven’t needed to use the service yet, thank heavens; however, they have done everything they said they would so far.

For more information on protecting your identity and Social Security number go to Social Security online.

On Friday or Tuesday I’ll post about what to do if you do fall victim to identity fraud. In the meantime, if you have any other tips for protecting oneself from identity theft, feel free to leave a comment, I’d love to hear them.

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