Identity theft is an all too common occurrence. And, just when we start to see the scams that these thieves are pulling and find ways to overcome them, they come up with something new that lures in victims that unknowingly turn over information that is used to clear out their bank accounts, run up their credit card debt and do some major financial damage.
When your identity is stolen, it can cost you several hundreds of hours and dollars to try to straighten it out.
That’s not to mention the mental stress and torture you go through in the process as you have to close your current accounts and open new ones, and go through all of the legal red tape to try to prove that you are who you say you are and that you didn’t do the things that it appears that you did.
While it’s almost impossible to protect yourself 100% unless you stay off the internet completely and perform all of your financial transactions with cash, there are things you can do to make yourself less of a target with the thieves that are looking to steal your identity and enjoy life on your dime.
They include:
Shred your junk mail
You know all of those credit card applications that you get in the mail? Do you even bother to tear them up or shred them prior to putting them in the garbage, where they belong? If not, then you may be opening your door to someone looking to make an easy buck.
Remember that thieves don’t think like you and I. They will do whatever it takes to get any amount of money that they can and leave you with the bill. That means that dumpster diving is not out of the question for them.
Anytime you get junk mail offering you financial advantages, shred it. In fact, you should shred anything that you’re throwing away that has any of your personal and identifying information.
Even if it is nothing more than your address, that’s all it takes for some identity thieves to find out more than enough about you to actually become you.
Password protect your information
While it can be a pain to have all of your information on your computer password protected, at least you’ll make it harder for a thief to get to it. After all, if your house is broken into and your computer is stolen, how hard will it be for them to pull up the document that has all of your financial information on it?
This is the same for your cell phone. Lock the screen so that no one with unauthorized access can get into it. Yes, you’ll have to unlock it every time you want to use it, but then you won’t have to worry that someone else can get into your accounts if your phone is ever lost or stolen.
Change your passwords often
Don’t forget to change your passwords at regular intervals too to keep hackers at bay. And, use passwords that they would never guess. For instance, you could use the first letters of your favorite phrase along with the year of your most precious memory.
Make it something that you will remember but that the average person couldn’t figure out about you.
Try to stay away from your name or numbers in sequence (1, 2, 3, 4) as those are some of the most common passwords for people to use. And, please, please, please do not just use the word “password”. If you’re going to do that, you might as well not use one at all.
Check your credit report regularly
Even if you feel that you’re information is tighter than tight, it’s important to check regularly just to make sure nothing has slipped through the cracks.
After all, just because you’re not getting a credit card bill in the mail doesn’t mean that someone isn’t out there living the good life in your name with your financial information.
You should run your credit report every six months or year. Go through it and make sure that you are familiar with all of the accounts on it and that they reflect the balances that you believe they should. If there are any unauthorized accounts on there, you need to challenge them immediately.
The longer you leave problem areas, the harder it will be to settle them.
Never give out personal information via phone or email
Most of us get emails daily that request our personal information to either get us money we’ve “won” or to have paperwork completed as some rich relative that we never knew has passed on and left us a fortune (after we send them money and all of our financial information, of course).
Sometimes, you may even get what appears to be a legitimate email from a company that you do business with that asks for personal information. However, never, ever, ever give that type of information out online.
The same goes for phone calls. If you receive telephone contact from a company that says that they’re updating their records or that they’ve lost your information and need it again, don’t just blurt it out. Reputable companies do not request information like this via phone, so it’s likely a scam.
The best thing you can do if you’re approached by a business that you believe to be legitimate is to contact them yourself. Look up their phone number online and call them directly to see if they need the information.
Chances are good that you’ll find out that they don’t and someone was just trying to get your account information for their own purposes.
If it sounds too good to be true, it is
Look, we all want to win thousands or millions of dollars or get something for nothing, but the reality is that your chances of this are extremely unlikely – especially if it is a contest you didn’t enter or involves a relative in a country that isn’t even in your family tree.
So, here’s the thing to remember: If it sounds too good to be true, then it is.
Don’t get yourself so caught up in the visions of yourself with more money than you ever dreamt possible that you ruin yourself financially forever. Keep your wits about you so that no one else gets to live the good life while you’re left footing the bill.
Make yourself a hard target for these identity thieves and they’ll likely leave you alone. After all, they’re looking for someone that hands the information over willingly and without a fuss.
Don’t be that person and you’ll get to be the one that enjoys the money you’ve been able to save. That’s how it should be.
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