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Credit Fixing Tips > Credit Fraud > Identity Theft Prevention
Identity Theft Prevention
Rigorous research has shown that the following methods will be most effective at preventing identity theft or fraud:
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 1: Freeze your credit, if available in your state. With a credit freeze, no one can open any form of credit in your name.
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 2: Request your own credit report each year and check the reports for inaccuracies and new lines of credit issued that you did not request. If you've been the target of identity fraud, check the data every six months. (In the United States, you are permitted a free copy of your credit report once a year from each credit reference agency. See http://www.annualcreditreport.com for further details).
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 3: Minimize the use of mail for sending or receiving financial documents, checks, and have your name removed from junk mail lists (8% of identity fraud results from stolen mail). Mail letters from the post office. In America, where standalone mailboxes are common, install a lock on the box.
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 4: Check your bank accounts each week online or at an ATM. 70% of identity fraud is detected by the victim, and victims who do so through electronic methods suffer losses of less than 1/8th that of those who rely on paper statements for monitoring account activity. (source: Javelin)
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 5: Use reliable ATM's at reputable sites only. Watch your surroundings for anything suspicious. If the interior of a bank is closed but an indoor ATM is still accessible with a card, refuse helping any stranger to enter. Look for any suspicious attachments to any ATM that may steal information. If in doubt, do not use the ATM but report the problem.
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 6: Watch your surrounding when entering sensitive codes of information at an ATM or on a telephone keypad. Enter sensitive things with touch-tone but not voice entry. Hide what you type on a keypad from others.
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 7: Do not use wireless phones or cellular phones to talk about sensitive information. Use a wired phone connected to the ground or encrypted Internet access.
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 8: Shred credit-card receipts, used (processed) cheques/checks, junk mail and other such documents, as they may contain private information.
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 9: Never give out personal information in response to telemarketers and delete all e-mails that claim to be from your bank (or other financial provider) and ask you to "log in" using a hyperlink embedded in the e-mail message. If in doubt as to the legitimacy of such requests, use a telephone to call marketers or financial providers back (rather than directly responding to the telemarketer or company that called or emailed you).
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 10: When shopping online, make sure the company is reputable and displays an approved security symbol. Also, make sure you log out of the site when finished.
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 11: Watch your surroundings when using a credit card at any checkout counters or any similar places as some identity thieves use cell phones with cameras to steal others' credit card numbers and expiration dates. (This is why certain stores now prohibit taking pictures and videos without consent.)
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 12: If you are a target, keep copies of police reports and records of who you talked to and when, so that you can back up the claim of fraud. Individuals who consider themselves at higher risk of identity fraud should consider purchasing fee-based credit monitoring services, which will notify you of any new accounts or credit inquiries made on your behalf.
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 13: Limit the amount of personal information you publish on the web. Small fragments here and there may be enough for someone to impersonate you in many ways. Be especially careful with information used as security keywords for banks, e.g. mother's maiden name and give your bank a different word (e.g. Password) instead of the real maiden name.
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 14: Don't divulge personal information such as date of birth to organizations that have no need of it - nearly all commercial organizations.
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 15: Don't routinely carry identity documents unless obliged by law to do so.
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 16: Do not allow anyone to copy your identification documents. If commercial organizations require you to submit a copy as a condition of doing business either don't do business with them, or retrieve the copy when your business ends (a written statement that they have not taken further copies should be obtained).
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 17: If someone calls you claiming to be from a financial institution you do business with asking for personal information - do not give it to them. Ask them why they want the information, hang up, and then call the institution (using contact information from a source other than the caller)
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 18: Don't order checks preprinted with your driver's license or social security number. If you can keep your address off them, do so.
Identity Theft Prevention Tip 19: Don't carry your social security card unless absolutely needed. Don't give out the number unless it is absolutely necessary or legally required (employers, landlords etc.). In states where your driver's license number is your social security number, be equally careful about who sees your license.
Additional Links:
Identity Theft
Credit Card Identity Theft
Tips on Gredit Repair Scams
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