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Identity theft is fast becoming a very serious crime in the UK. Its repercussions for the individual who has his or her identity stolen can be very serious and frustrating. Claiming back your own identity from the thief can be a slow and painful experience, often taking many months to be resolved. During this time, you may find it difficult to get a loan or a mortgage, even after the thief has stopped using your identity.

The biggest use of identity theft is in the hijacking of credit cards and information used to obtain new cards in the real user’s name. The best way to deal with these unscrupulous thieves is to not be caught out by their clever tricks and lose your identity in the first place.

A very large percentage of cases of identity theft stemmed from thieves obtaining information from credit cards and related documents. It is essential to safeguard your card and the associated paperwork.

Most of it is common sense, but on the other hand, if you’re not prone to being a thief yourself. You will probably never think of the clever moves that these nasty individuals use to get at the information that they need.

The first thing is that you should never allow anyone to borrow your credit card or get access to the card numbers. You may of course have perfect trust in a close member of your family, and they never deliberately do you any harm.

If you give your sister your card to use one day, will she no all the things to avoid identity theft? Will she inadvertently give away your information that will then be used by identity thieves. This is why it is best never to let anyone else use your card even if your total trust in them.

A lot of credit card fraud can happen simply because you do not keep your eye on your card and who is handling it, and what they are doing with the card. When handing over your card is very important to try to not let her out of your sight, even for a few seconds.

If you are at a restaurant, and the waiter comes over and you give him a card. The waiter will go off somewhere out of your sight to process it. This is a very bad idea, once out of your sight is incredibly easy for a waiter or other staff to electronically record all information from your card.

This process is performed with a piece of equipment smaller than a cigarette packet, and takes less than a second. If you are going to somewhere like a restaurant, or a bar, where the card may be out of your possession or sight. Don’t use it use it, use cash, if you don’t have the cash go to the bar or cashier’s desk and make your payment in person. Do not give your card to someone who takes it away, out of your sight.

The same can be true in shops, although it is not so much of a problem. In normal retail, outlets because you are usually stood with the cashier, do not let the cards out of your sight. Don’t wander off while they process, your payment, and don’t let your eyes look around the store, remember, the process of stealing your cards information takes less than a second.

Laws governing credit cards in the UK states that transaction receipts should not display your full card number only the last few digits. This is a welcome move by the government, but it is not a 100% guarantee that there will not be information on the receipt that an identity thief can use to their advantage. Do not leave the receipt behind always take them with you.

Credit card applications drop through the letterbox with alarming regularity. Each of these application forms is a goldmine for the potential thief. It is so simple for the thief to apply for that credit card that you did not want. It is easy for him to change the delivery address for the card on the application. Make sure to tell your postman, that you want him to push the post all the way through your letterbox. If you decide, you do not wish to make an application don’t just throw away the paperwork or even rip it up. Make sure shred it, to totally destroy it.

Using your credit card online can also be a tricky situation, although contrary to popular belief, online transactions are actually safer than the physical transactions with your card. Care must still be taken with all online purchases. The best option when making purchases online is to use major corporations that are household names. These are usually online versions of major department stores are highly trusted retailers.

Of course, not all things can be purchased from these types of companies. So when performing transactions with an online company that you do not know. You should make absolutely sure that their address (for payments) at the top of your screen begins with HTTPS not the usual HTTP. The ‘s’ stands for, secure, if you do not see this on the payment page your information can be read by anybody.

You should never respond to urgent e-mails from your bank that tells you that there is a problem with your credit card and you need to resolve it is immediately online. Nearly all these e-mails are fraudulent, if you think this may be a genuine communication about your credit card. Then call the number you will find on the back of your card.

Lastly, make absolutely sure that you check through every transaction on your credit card statement; try to compare them to your actual receipts. Any transaction that you cannot recall should be considered dubious until you have confirmed the payment with your credit card company.

You should always check that every transaction is valid; it is not only that a few pounds may be lost to credit card fraud. It may also indicate that someone is using a duplicate of your real card, or that your identity has been stolen

There is no real reason to be unduly concerned about using a credit card. As long, you follow the very simple and easy rules above it is unlikely that you will have any serious problems with identity theft, involving your credit cards.

Many people do not realize that there are different types of identity theft. There are indeed several ways in which the identity thief can take advantage of your personal information, while leaving you to deal with the repercussions. Here’s what you need to know about the 5 types of identity theft.

The type of identity theft you are probably most familiar with is Financial Identity Theft. It is when the thief uses your information to set up financial accounts in your name without your permission or knowledge. The thief may obtain credit cards, loans, merchandise, homes, vehicles, vacations and more, all in your name. Financial identity theft can definitely cost you thousands of dollars in debt, not to mention the painstaking process of clearing your name and credit.

Another type of identity theft is Medical Identity Theft wherein the thief uses your information to obtain health and other medical benefits and services. Being a victim of medical identity theft can result to fraudulent billing and having erroneous medical files. Your ability to get a health and life insurance may also be affected. Imagine the nightmare of having an actual medical emergency and having your insurance company refusing to cover the bills as records show you’ve already had the procedure done or you’ve depleted your insurance coverage.

An identity thief can not only leave you with tons of debt, but leave you with a criminal record as well. With Criminal Identity Theft, the thieves use your information to obtain employment, to commit or distance themselves from crimes, or provide your information when questioned by law enforcement. Repercussions can range from undeserved tickets to outstanding arrest warrants and even temporary imprisonment. Victims can also be fired from their jobs due to an “undisclosed conviction”.

An identity thief can also use your identity to begin a “new life”. Basically, the thief openly lives and works as you. This type of identity theft is called Character Identity Theft or Identity Cloning. Using your name, the thief can collect tax refunds and receive your benefits, obtain professional licenses, be married, have children or file for bankruptcy. The thieves are usually criminals, fugitives, illegal aliens, or people with poor work or financial history.

Identity theft can not only be devastating to individuals but to businesses as well especially in cases wherein the business’ credit and the owner’s credit are one in the same. With Commercial Identity Theft wherein criminals get credit by charging it to another business’ name, business operations may be severely affected due to a loan being denied or called early or if interest rates on key credit accounts are increased due to a universal default cause.

Truly, an awareness of these different types of identity theft is helpful in protecting ourselves from becoming a victim of the crime. Given that identity theft has now become more common, it’s definitely wise to know what we are up against in order to take the appropriate preventive measures.

Personal computers are widespread and shared computers are a popular means for internet access. These “public” computers exist in libraries, colleges, coffee house cyber cafes, and other places. They are popular because they offer quick, convenient access to the world wide web. Unfortunately, they are also very popular with identity thieves because they present an easy means to access the personal information of others. Just recently, a young twenty- two year old former Drexel University student pleaded guilty to identity theft and she openly admitted stealing more than $116,000 worth of money through various schemes.

Credit cards, banks, and even online sites that are not used to transact business still contain personal data that needs to be protected and this problem is compounded further with shared computers. Are there ways to protect against this type of theft when using a shared computer? Let’s take a look:

Protecting Your Identity:

Shared computers are common in many places, like libraries, schools, hotels, coffee house cyber cafes, etc. Remembering these simple precautions can help keep your personal information your own:

Never select the “Remember My ID” box:

Many web sites offer the option to remember your personal id on that particular computer. This offers added convenience, but this option should never be selected on a shared computer. If an ID is remembered, it will be stored on the shared computer and will likely remain logged into the web site, offering a thief easy access your personal data.

Never Save Passwords:

Similar to the option to “remember my id”, many web sites offer to save your password. This option is usually presented when you logon and it is intended as a convenience measure. With shared computers, however, passwords should never be saved. If an identity thief logs onto a site with a saved password, there is no doubt what will happen next. The thief will already have your password and will logon immediately to seek your personal information.

Don’t Forget to Sign Out Completely:

Signing out is as important as not selecting the options to remember your personal ID and password. You should always remember to sign out of all web sites. If you remain signed in, your account will be openly accessible to identity thieves. It’s like placing your logon id and password on a silver platter and turning over to an identity thief.

Begin the Habit of Changing Passwords Frequently:

Changing passwords is a good idea whether a computer is shared or not, but it is especially important on a shared computer for two important reasons: spyware and malware. If a shared computer becomes infected by spyware or malware, these programs will quickly obtain your password and logon id combination because spyware and malware record every key stroke made on the infected computer. To avoid this problem, change passwords frequently using a non- shared pc.

Erase the Contents of the Browser’s Cache:

Personal computers contain copies of all the web sites visited. This cache needs to be cleared, if possible, after using a shared computer. Some libraries, colleges, and other places do not permit individual access to this area, but it doesn’t hurt to check upon logging off, just to see if it is possible.

Don’t Sign Into a Shared Computer and Walk Away:

This sounds simple enough, but the temptation to logon to a shared computer at a library, school, hotel, or cyber café and walk away for a quick break or other purpose is always present. Giving into this temptation might satisfy a hunger pang or the urge for a drink, but while away from the computer, an identity thief could quickly walk over to the abandoned pc and access whatever personal information is exposed in front of him/her. To be completely safe, get into the habit of logging off immediately before taking a break when you use a shared computer. Even a short break of a few minutes is enough time for a determined thief to obtain personal information.

Avoid Transactions That Involve Secure Financial Data

Shared computers should always be avoided when logging into web sites that contain any type of personal financial data. This includes sites used for banking, purchases, and other sites that contain secured data stored in the site. Web sites like blogs do not usually contain the sensitive information that an identity thief wants and are thus less important. However, a site like a bank, brokerage service, or online store contains extensive amounts of personal information including access to financial data. You don’t ever want to compromise something as important as your money.

Shared computers are popular and they can be found in libraries, schools, hotels, and other places. They offer convenience, and this is the primary reason for their popularity. However, with this added convenience comes the added chance for identity theft. A single shared computer can easily be accessed by hundreds of people each day, making it critical that individuals take the necessary precautions to prevent theft of personal information. Taking some simple steps like the ones listed above can help prevent identity theft before it begins. These steps won’t prevent one- hundred percent of the instances of identity theft, but they will greatly reduce the chances for falling victim to this type of online crime.