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BANKING & CREDIT -
Identity theft has become a real problem costing millions of dollars a year and untold problems for many people. To help avoid having your identity stolen and to reduce risk of financial loss. Consider the following:
1. Make sure you check your bank accounts and credit card statements on a regular basis to see if any unusual or improper transactions have occurred. If you have not already, set up your account on your computer so you have ready access to transactions on these accounts, and can check regularly. This is very easy to do. Just go to your bank’s or credit card company’s web site and follow the instructions. As an extra precaution, make sure to use different passwords for each account and change the passwords every few months.
2. If an unusual transaction occurs on your account, notify the financial institution right away to determine if indeed there is a problem and what to do about it.
3. Never give your personal identification numbers (PIN’s) or passwords to anyone else.
4. If you move, always make sure to inform all banks, credit card companies, insurers, etc. of your change of address. This will help prevent communications from these institutions, that have confidential information, from getting into the wrong hands.
5. Make sure to shred all documents that have confidential information. Many times identity theft occurs by someone “picking the trash” and getting confidential information. Shredders are relatively inexpensive, so consider acquiring one and using it.
6. Check your credit report at least once annually to see if any suspicious activity has occurred, such as someone else applying for an account under your name. You might also consider signing up for a service from the credit reporting agency that will alert you to suspicious activity.
7. When purchasing items over the Internet, make sure you are dealing with a reputable retailer and that their site is security protected. This information should be included on their web site.
8. Do not under any circumstances ever provide any account information, passwords, personal information, etc. through email. First of all, it is not secure. Second, it is not uncommon to get an email scam that pretends to be a company or financial institution that you deal with on a normal basis. These emails often state that they need some information, or need you to confirm something by you clicking on a link, so that your account can remain active, or will not be closed or something else. Do not respond or click on the supplied link. If you are concerned, call up the company that is supposedly contacting you for this information, to see if they actually requested it and sent you the email, and respond over the phone accordingly. And do not call by using any phone number supplied in the email. Get a phone number from your statement, back of your credit card, etc. to make the call.
9. Protect the information in your computer by installing proper anti-
10. If you are a victim of identity theft, resulting in a loss of funds, always seek restitution. Most of the time the financial institution is required to return money lost through fraud that was not your fault. Also, check to see if your homeowner’s insurance policy provides any protection. If you are really concerned, additional insurance protection can be purchased to protect against identity theft.
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