How to Prevent Identity Theft

How to Prevent Identity Theft

Reduce your risk of identity theft

Unfortunately, it’s impossible to eliminate the risk of identity theft entirely. But here are nine ways you can reduce the risk:

1. Store your Social Security card in a safe place and safeguard your number. Don’t carry your card with you. Your Social Security number is a master key to your personal data. Guard it as best you can. When you are asked for your number, it’s smart to ask why it is needed and how it will be protected.

2. Strengthen passwords. Random combinations of letters, numbers and special characters, different for each account, work best. Your mother’s maiden name or your pet’s name aren’t hard to find.

3. Watch how much information you give away. Can strangers see your full name, birthdate and family members’ names on Facebook? Would you give any of that information to a caller asking the right questions? (ProPublica found many people are willing to trade that kind of information for a free cookie.) Don’t click on email links if you don’t recognize the sender.

4. Watch the mail. Stolen mail is one of the easiest paths to a stolen identity. Have your mail held if you’re out of town. Consider a U.S. Postal Service-approved lockable mailbox.

5. Make liberal use of a shredder. Any credit card or bank statements that someone could fish out of your garbage shouldn’t be there in the first place. Shred junk mail, too, especially pre-approved offers of credit.

6. Use caution when shopping in stores. The Federal Trade Commission suggests:

?    Know where your wallet is at all times.
?    Be careful with your debit or credit card (no putting it in a coat pocket “just for a second”).
?    Don’t tell anyone your PIN (and don’t keep it with your card in case you forget).

7. Protect your mobile devices with passwords. Mobile devices can be a real risk, particularly if you don’t password-protect them. Keep software updated and use hard-to-guess passwords and two-factor identification when available. Turn off Bluetooth unless you are using it. You should also know that when you use public Wi-Fi, others may be able to see your data. Lastly, be cautious in downloading free apps, which can contain malware.

8. Check your credit reports frequently. You’re entitled to one free credit report every year from each of the three major credit reporting bureaus. Consider requesting one report every four months, so you can check for suspicious or incorrect information throughout the year. If you watch your credit scores, be alert for any large, unexplained change.

9. Monitor your financial statements. Read credit card and bank statements. Make sure you recognize every charge, no matter how small. Know due dates and call to investigate if you do not receive an expected bill. Read health insurance claims and make sure you actually received the care your insurance paid for. (If someone else’s health records are mixed in with yours, the results could be life-threatening.)

Stay alert

No matter how careful you are, you could become a victim. A restaurant employee could snap a photo of your card with a smartphone. You could hear on the news about a data breach that involves a credit card you have used or a store that you frequent. (Having your data compromised does not mean that your identity will be stolen, but it is a reason to be extra vigilant.)
The sooner you detect a problem, the sooner you can fix it. Regularly checking your credit also avoids the possibility of discovering you have a problem at exactly the moment you had planned to use it.

E Link | Click Here

Regards

Pralhad Jadhav
Senior Librarian
Khaitan & Co

Upcoming Event | One Day Seminar-cum-workshop on “Quick Response (QR) Code: Applications in Library Information & Science Services” on 12thMarch, 2016 @ AIKTC New Panvel.
Note | If anybody use these post for forwarding in any social media coverage or covering in the Newsletter please give due credit to those who are taking efforts for the same.