Preventing Identity Theft

A Guide to Preventing Identity Theft

The following material is the result of comprehensive case study and elaborated work of excellent content writers.

Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in the US today. The Federal Trade Commission, or FTC, estimates there are millions of victims annually. While identity theft is not a violent crime, it is one that can be devastating to its victims. It can take lots of money and time to recover from the damage caused by having your identity stolen. People have been denied homes, education, and jobs because of identity thieves. Read on for the basics of preventing identity theft from happening to you.

The first way to avoid becoming a victim is to keep a close watch on possessions like your wallet, handbag, laptop computer, or any other item that contains personal information. The theft of items such as these is one of the leading causes of identity theft. Other times, criminals gain access to sensitive information by going through discarded papers. They will literally dig through trash to obtain what they need to steal your identity. To prevent this from happening, use a paper shredder to destroy sensitive documents before recycling or throwing them out. Also, keep your Social Security number safe by never carrying it with you, or having it printed on your checks or driver's license.

Identity theft has gone high-tech, as well. There is a scam on the Internet called phishing that has become extremely common. Phishing involves obtaining personal and financial information by posing as a trusted company. Many times, victims receive fraudulent emails from criminals posing as their bank, the IRS, or online businesses like PayPal and Ebay. These emails look just like the real thing. With one difference -- they try to get you to click on a link (which of course leads to a phishing website) or send back highly sensitive information like your username, password, account number, or credit card number. Avoiding this type of identity theft is quite simple. Never send this information via email, because the actual legitimate companies would never ask for it. The newest version of Microsoft's Internet Explorer has a phishing protection option which alerts you if you happen upon a site that is suspected to be fraudulent.

Preventing identity theft is a growing concern of many banks and credit unions. Check with your financial institution to see if they offer any education or resources on this subject. You may also want to consider identity theft insurance, one of the newest ways consumers are protecting themselves. As this crime becomes more prevalent in our society, more ways to stay safe are being developed.

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Identity Theft News:

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For additional identity theft prevention tips and information on how long to keep financial records, visit www.fellowes.com or check with your tax .

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Today's Tip On Identity Theft

Another possible identity theft scam involving credit cards is carried out when the person calling says he or she needs to verify your card information at an online merchant or pay service. You can be a smart consumer and practice theft prevention by not giving out your credit card number to anyone soliciting information. Identity theft and fraud are all around in our modern world, but consumers can learn how to avoid a large percentage of the crime simply by being educated.

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