Useful Identity Theft Protection Tips

Identity theft protection is most effective as a preventive measure. For instance, you need not carry every credit card and identification you own all the time.

If you aren't driving, leave your license in a secure place at home. If you aren't planning to transact any business that will require your Social Security card, then don't bring it.

If you have an old utility bill somewhere in your bag, or a piece of paper, postcard, or envelope that happens to have your personal data, don't just leave it there. It's unlikely that you will even notice it's missing, so shred it and throw it away.

Identity theft protection tip #2: Dispose of ID properly

There is no earthly reason for you to be cramming old, expired credit cards into your wallet, or leaving them in old wallets laying around your house. Cut them up and throw the pieces in separate bins or dispose of them separately.

If you have a credit card you hardly ever use, or maintain inactive bank accounts, close the accounts. Thieves may just use it and you will be none the wiser until it's too late.

Identity theft protection tip #3: Keep your PIN away from the card

Okay, so you chose a PIN that's impossible to guess. The problem is, you have a hard time remembering it. So you write it on a piece of paper and keep it next to the card? If you do this, you're just asking to be victimized.

Studies show that in a significant number of identity theft cases involving ATM cards, the victims wrote their PINs either on a piece of paper kept with the card or on the card itself.

Identity theft protection tip #4: Exercise your right to privacy

Finally, identity theft protection is 90% knowing how you are vulnerable. Banks have different privacy policies. Ask your bank under what scenarios they would make your account info available to someone else. You have the right to know just how your data is used and can refuse it.

Ask them if they periodically make new product offers through e-mail, or if they give your contact info to an allied organization. If you don't want to receive product offers by e-mail or via the phone, let them know.

When Frank Abagnale trains law enforcement officers for the FBI's National Academy about identity theft, he asks agents for their addresses and nothing more. The next day, he returns with everything he would need to steal their lives: Social Security numbers, dates of birth, current salary, checking account numbers, the names of everyone in their family, and more. This illustrates how easy it is for anyone from anywhere in the world to assume our identity and, in a matter of hours, devastate our lives in ways that can take years to recover from. Considering the fact that a fresh victim is hit in the U.S. every four seconds, Stealing Your Life is the reference everyone needs, by an unsurpassed authority on the latest identity-theft schemes.

Get your FREE credit score and more!