Head Resist

One of the most common ways an identity thief steals your identity is by first stealing your mail. That is why everyone should have a mail box that locks. Most new homes are now built with mail boxes that lock and if you have one of the old kind that you just pull open, you should upgrade to a locking model. If an ID thief is successful in stealing your mail, you may never even know what he has stolen. Until it is too late, that is.

Do you get those pre-approved credit card applications in the mail at least once a week? Those are exactly what an ID thief is after. Identity thieves will take your credit card application and change the address to their address or PO box and then send it in. They are hoping to get a brand new credit card sent to them in your name, without you even knowing it.

That is the reason why those pre-approved credit card application everyone gets in the mail are so bad and should be banned. They have personal information already on them and you don’t even have to fill them out! It is terribly annoying to get them so often and I have to make sure I shred them and not just throw them away.

You should pay particular attention to all junk mail that has any of your personal information on it. You need to make it as hard as possible for identity theft to happen by making sure you shred that kind of mail. An ID thief is always on the lookout for something that he can use to pretend to be you and send in. Department store credit applications are a similar type of mail that you need to make sure you shred.

It is a much different world we live in today than just 10 years ago. We all now seem to have multiple accounts online and so many passwords a normal person has to write them all down just to keep track. We have multiple credit cards as well and many have more than one bank account. We pay our bills online and it can all be overwhelming.

It is for this reason that it is more important than ever to keep track of all your accounts and passwords and protect them from prying eyes and thieves. The “prfession” of being an identity thief is now more prevalent than ever because there are so many new ways an ID thief can get access to your information. The only way to fight back is to be aware of everything you do and make sure you try your best to keep your private information hidden.

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While identity thieves will use any data possible to assume the identity of another, their bread and butter revolves around your name, social security number, account numbers and credit card numbers. With this information, an identity thief’s next vacation is right around the corner. That is why these items should be your most guarded.

Identity thieves have come up with many inventive ways to steal your identity. Some are very technical, some not so much:

• Do you have an outside unlocked mailbox? Why? This is the first stop for an ID thief. Your mailbox allows easy access to your bank statements, credit card numbers, mortgage statements, 401k account information. Your mailbox is an open book to your life. Close it.

• Have you ever received an email from a financial institution with which you have no association and the subject line states that they need your account information to process a transaction (or similar situation)? This is a “phishing” attempt. They cast out their line into the email ocean of millions of addresses hoping only to bait one unsuspecting fish. While you might not have an account with the financial institution they’re using, thousands of people will. How many of those people will be caught off guard? By the way, these emails, if you open them, appear very official and can even appear to link back to the actual institution. Don’t fall for it.

• Does your company website list information about you, maybe in the form of a small bio and a picture? Ouch! Now the identity thief has your employment history, your college information, and so on. The same thing goes for publicly listing your resume. Couple this information with information found in the phone book and the identity thief has your history along with whatever they can garner from your unlocked mailbox.

• They might steal your trash. You’ve seen a movie or twelve in which a criminal steals somebody’s trash and finds out all about them. This is a tactic commonly know as dumpster diving. (A simple fix for this? Buy a shredder, shred everything twice and divide everything into multiple trash bags. This way one trash bag shouldn’t contain the entire shredded remains of any single document.)

• They might pose as a telemarketer from a company they know you do business with and call you to upgrade your service or convince you to buy some add-on. They will be very convincing because they will have your account number, last payment amount, your address and any other bit of information they can glean from the statement they stole from your…you guessed it…unlocked mailbox. They’ll convince you to add on that service or purchase that new whiz-bang gizmo. “Now, sir, all I need is your credit card number, the three digit code on the back of your credit card and your date of birth and we’ll place the order for you today.” Ouch.

• Outright theft. Some identity thieves just don’t have time for elaborate hoaxes or technologically advances scams. They just steal your purse or wallet whenever they see an opportunity. Another thing they might steal: employee records. It’s amazing the information provided in an employee file!

• They might fill out a change of address form and have your statements sent directly to them.

• They might know you! The identity thief might be your brother, cousin, best friend or…spouse. It isn’t unusual for identity theft victims to get played by someone they know. This is the most unfortunate of circumstance because there’s not much you can do to prevent it outside of never talking about your personal information. This, however, can be hard to hide from a spouse or close relative.

This is just a small list of possible ways to have your identity stolen. Most of the above situations can be avoided with a little forethought and planning. Understanding that identity theft is always a possibility is the first step in avoiding it.

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.

These identity thieves are out there to victimized innocent people particularly seniors. They feel that seniors are easy targets because of their financial status and their lack of awareness of the matter.

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.

Do you get pre-approved credit card applications in the mail every week? The amount of junk mail we all get is out of hand and it seems that these applications keep coming more and more frequently. I have to make sure I shred them and not just throw them away as these pre-approved applications are just what an identity thief is looking for!

One of the main ways an ID thief gets your personal information is by stealing your mail. One of the things he is always glad to find is a pre-approved application for a credit card of any type. If they find one of these applications, identity thieves will change your address to their address or PO box and then send it in. They are hoping to get a brand new credit card sent to them in your name without you even knowing it!

Since you have not requested any of these applications, you will never know if one has been stolen out of your mailbox. If it were something that you requested, then after a while you will realize you never got it and follow up with the company. However, since these pre-approved applications are unsolicited, it impossible for you to ever know that one was sent to you in the first place!

That is why it is so important for you to shred all your finacial statements and junk mail. It really should be against the law for these companies to be sending out pre filled credit card applications that anyone can get a hold of. An ID thief is always on the lookout for something like that that he can use to pretend to be you and send in. Department store credit applications are a similar type of mail that you need to make sure you shred.

If an identity theif steals your mail, you may never know what kind of trouble you are in until it is too late. He may be able to charge a sizable amount on a credit card that will cause you months to fix. He may also change more of your addresses and cause chaos in many untold ways. It is a violation that is just as bad and feels just as bad as having a burglar break into your house. That is why these credit card applications are so bad and should be banned.

If your mail is stolen and the ID thief pretends to be you and sends in your application, you will not even know about it until it is too late. So beware and shred that junk mail that has any of your personal information on it. You need to make it as hard as possible for idenity theft to happen.

What makes identity theft the epidemic it has become? The fact that half of all victims know the person that committed the theft according to the Better Business Bureau’s 2005 Fraud Survey.

Watch out for these red flags

Resentment

I worked for a company that handled lost and stolen credit card reports. I don’t know how many times someone called and said their ex or soon to be ex spouse stole all of their financial information and went on a vengeance spending spree.

Of course it’s not limited to former husbands and wives but anger is a powerful emotion. The obvious familiarity, total access to private information combined with the desire to do as much damage as possible makes this the most devastating form of id theft financially and emotionally.

No matter what the relationship, always keep a close eye on your credit and other financial information.

The Snoop.

The people that ask you too many questions of a very personal nature. Its easy to not think anything of it.The person may be a relative, neighbor or close friend but ask yourself (and them) exactly why do they need to know your date of birth or social? You may even catch them snooping thru your personal information.

Now it could all be perfectly innocent but with id theft the number one crime for the fifth year in a row, do you really want to take that chance?

3.Addiction

“I don’t have any drug addicts in my family.” Good deal but substance abusers are not the only people who will steal from you. Alcoholics, people addicted to porn, even compulsive shoppers are potential identity thieves.

Gambling and pornography on the internet are billion dollar industries. According to Jim Vaules, an identity theft expert for Lexis Nexis, “You see a lot of internet gambling and pornography sites being charged to stolen cards. [Identity Thieves] might use the card of a family member or friend”

Any kind of obsessive behaviour can throw a person’s normally rational judgement out the window because the only thing that counts is satisfying the habit NOW!

Addiction also means more than likely the identity thief can and will justify their actions. Even if you catch them red handed, its very possible they’ll say its not their fault, put the blame on you or just shrug their shoulders and say “so what?”

What do you do in instances like this? Filing a police report may not be a bad idea.

Author Liz Pullman Weston of MSN Money says “A little tough love may be the only way to stop a miscreant from becoming a career criminal”

Even if the addict apologizes profusely and vows never to do it again (quite common) the odds are high they will do it again unless they get some counseling. Filing a police report no matter how reluctant you are could be a step in that direction.

There are of course other symptoms. Somebody living above their means or mail that looks like its been tampered with. Identity theft requires constant vigilance with credit monitoring, storing private information in secure places, shredding documents etc.

If identity theft happens to you, the best thing besides recovering your identity will be your peace of mind in realizing it wasn’t anyone you know.

Daryl Campbell is a writer and owner of Campbell Marketing L.L.C. What’s the best way to fight id theft and fraud? Free information. Get featured articles from experts as well as tips,resources and up to the minute news at http://fightidtheft.winthemarket.com