Ways to Prevent Identity Theft
In order to protect yourself against identity theft, you must first recognize that it is a serious problem. If you have not seen the articles and television news reports about the damage done to innocent people as a result of having other people masquerading as them and taking advantage of their good names, you may not realize just what a danger this new crime has become to ordinary, law-abiding citizens.
The next thing you need to do is become aware of the ways in which you may be exposing your personal information to identity thieves. Most of us tend to be pretty trusting in our day-to-day activities, and tend to assume that a request for information such as our full names, addresses, telephone numbers, driver's license and Social Security numbers is legitimate. Many of us treat a lot of Internet venues such as bulletin boards as though they were spoken conversations rather than written correspondence, and as such freely discuss bits of information that can be put together to compromise our identities to thieves.
Being aware doesn't mean having to completely clam up and not talk to anybody. But you need to be mindful. It can be as simple as asking why a store needs your personal information in order to complete a purchase, or using initials or nicknames when referring to family members in posts about your life on Internet communities.
You also need to be aware of how street crime can become an avenue for identity theft. Many people carry far more in their wallets or purses than they really need, simply because it's more convenient to have it to hand than to remember to pick it up before going to a place where it is needed. It may not be possible to leave your driver's license or medical insurance card at home, since there is no telling when you could be in a situation when you need to produce them immediately. But it is generally not necessary to carry your Social Security card with you everywhere, and unless you absolutely need to make a purchase with a check, it may not be wise to have your checkbook with you.
If you can keep a credit card without spending every penny of your credit line, using it for regular purchases and paying off your bill every month will give you protection against fraud both if it is lost or stolen and if someone manages to obtain the number by subterfuge. A debit card is not quite so secure, since a quick-acting thief could drain your entire bank account before you discover its loss, but at least they cannot use it to create an entire paper persona in your name. If you have no other options, you may want to look into a stored-value card, which can be loaded with money at your bank or other financial institution and then used to pay bills and make purchases. If it is lost or stolen, you will be out that sum of money, but the thief cannot use it to invade your entire life.
You will also want to think about what you throw away. Many of us are accustomed to assume that trash is of interest only to garbage collectors. However, a growing number of identity thieves have taken to skulking around neighborhoods on garbage day and poking through people's trash in search of utility bills, credit card bills, medical bills, pay stubs, and other things that contain numbers they can use to steal someone's identity. If you cannot retain all these documents in a place safe from burglars sophisticated enough to commit identity fraud, be sure to destroy them thoroughly. Tearing them up may not be enough, so you may want to invest in a shredder. Sometimes mixing the torn-up items with disgusting things like spoiled food or catbox contents may dissuade would-be identity thieves, but there's always the risk of being the one whose garbage is plundered by a total douchebag with a cast-iron stomach. Some people even burn their sensitive papers to make it impossible to recover them.
If you are particularly vulnerable to identity theft, you may want to have your credit report locked so that it will not be given out unless you authorize it. You can also join identity-theft protection services which, for a fee, protect your identity against theft and pay damages to you if identity theft does occur while you are a part of their program.
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