05-29-08 Take Steps To Protect Yourself From Identity Theft
By Cindy Cruz
Identity Theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in United States. Alan Banks from the Illinois State Treasurer’s Office gave tips on what you can do to protect yourself and what to do if you become a victim during a program presented at the South Holland Public Library. Even with all the preventative measures, there is no guarantee that you won’t become a victim.
How do thieves get your personal information? The most common way is through your purse or wallet. Bank advises removing things in your wallet and purse that you don’t need. Never carry your social security card. Another way to gain personal information is through dumpster diving (going through your garbage). Anything that has personal information should be shredded. Remove preprinted forms that are often placed in the middle of a magazine. Leaving outgoing mail for pickup by the mail carrier can also be an invitation for identity thieves. Banks said it is important to bring in your mail as soon as possible because identity thieves will watch you and then steal personal information from your mailbox. Minimize your risk by keeping track of your billing cycles. If you don’t receive a bill, check into it because it may have been stolen and used by an identity thief to open an account in your name.
To protect your personal information online use a password that is a combination of letters and numbers that are upper and lower case so it cannot be easily figured out. The person who becomes a victim of identity theft usually knows the person who stole their identity. “We tend to be too trusting and give out information unknowingly,” Banks said.
Be wary if someone asks for your social security number, and if you are required to give information only give the last four digits. It is important to check your credit report often. Banks said www.annualcreditreport.com is the only free website sanctioned by the government. You can obtain all three credit reports from the three credit bureaus - Equifax, TransUnion and Experian annually from the date of request. Don’t request all three at once unless you are a victim and don’t look for just the obvious like open accounts. Look for wrong birthdates, wrong social security numbers, and wrong spellings of your name as well.
Banks said 70% of all credit reports are inaccurate. He also advised checking your credit report online because one of the reporting bureaus, Equifax, stamps their label on their report envelope so anyone would know this a credit report and that is all a thief needs to steal your identity.
“We have to be more cautious about the things we say to people, what we do, and what we throw away,” Banks said.
If you are a victim put a fraud alert on your accounts so that companies will be immediately alerted if someone tries to open an account. When an account is attempting to be opened the lender or creditor will contact you by phone from the number you put on the alert. Always put your home phone number down. Banks also suggests lowering your credit limit to protect yourself.
You also have to be careful of phishing which is sending an email to the user claiming to be a legitimate business in an attempt to scam the user to surrendering personal information. A bank will never send you an email requesting personal information. If they want to verify information you will be required to come into the bank or financial institution.
If you do become a victim of identity theft report it to the Illinois Attorney General’s Consumer Fraud and Identity Theft Division at 1-866-999-5630 or www.ag.state.il.us. You should also file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission at www.ftc.gov or 1-877-438-4338.
Below are a list of helpful resources for Identity Theft & Consumer Fraud
-www.annualcreditreport.com or call 877-322-8228 (free credit reports)
- Fraud Alert Hotlines (call in the event of ID Theft):
Equifax 800-525-6285
Experian 888-397-3742
TransUnion 800-680-7289
- www.optoutprescreen.com; 888-5-OPT-OUT (888-567-8688) (stop pre-approved credit card offers)
- National Do Not Call List: wwww.donotcall.gov; 1-888-382-1222 (You must call from the number you want registered)
- Direct Marketing Association (to stop junk mail)
Mail Preference Service
P.O. Box 9008
Farmingdale, NY 11735
www.dmaconsumers.org
To request a free presentation on identity theft for your organization or community group, call the State Treasurer’s Office Financial Education Division at 312-814-1247.
How do thieves get your personal information? The most common way is through your purse or wallet. Bank advises removing things in your wallet and purse that you don’t need. Never carry your social security card. Another way to gain personal information is through dumpster diving (going through your garbage). Anything that has personal information should be shredded. Remove preprinted forms that are often placed in the middle of a magazine. Leaving outgoing mail for pickup by the mail carrier can also be an invitation for identity thieves. Banks said it is important to bring in your mail as soon as possible because identity thieves will watch you and then steal personal information from your mailbox. Minimize your risk by keeping track of your billing cycles. If you don’t receive a bill, check into it because it may have been stolen and used by an identity thief to open an account in your name.
To protect your personal information online use a password that is a combination of letters and numbers that are upper and lower case so it cannot be easily figured out. The person who becomes a victim of identity theft usually knows the person who stole their identity. “We tend to be too trusting and give out information unknowingly,” Banks said.
Be wary if someone asks for your social security number, and if you are required to give information only give the last four digits. It is important to check your credit report often. Banks said www.annualcreditreport.com is the only free website sanctioned by the government. You can obtain all three credit reports from the three credit bureaus - Equifax, TransUnion and Experian annually from the date of request. Don’t request all three at once unless you are a victim and don’t look for just the obvious like open accounts. Look for wrong birthdates, wrong social security numbers, and wrong spellings of your name as well.
Banks said 70% of all credit reports are inaccurate. He also advised checking your credit report online because one of the reporting bureaus, Equifax, stamps their label on their report envelope so anyone would know this a credit report and that is all a thief needs to steal your identity.
“We have to be more cautious about the things we say to people, what we do, and what we throw away,” Banks said.
If you are a victim put a fraud alert on your accounts so that companies will be immediately alerted if someone tries to open an account. When an account is attempting to be opened the lender or creditor will contact you by phone from the number you put on the alert. Always put your home phone number down. Banks also suggests lowering your credit limit to protect yourself.
You also have to be careful of phishing which is sending an email to the user claiming to be a legitimate business in an attempt to scam the user to surrendering personal information. A bank will never send you an email requesting personal information. If they want to verify information you will be required to come into the bank or financial institution.
If you do become a victim of identity theft report it to the Illinois Attorney General’s Consumer Fraud and Identity Theft Division at 1-866-999-5630 or www.ag.state.il.us. You should also file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission at www.ftc.gov or 1-877-438-4338.
Below are a list of helpful resources for Identity Theft & Consumer Fraud
-www.annualcreditreport.com or call 877-322-8228 (free credit reports)
- Fraud Alert Hotlines (call in the event of ID Theft):
Equifax 800-525-6285
Experian 888-397-3742
TransUnion 800-680-7289
- www.optoutprescreen.com; 888-5-OPT-OUT (888-567-8688) (stop pre-approved credit card offers)
- National Do Not Call List: wwww.donotcall.gov; 1-888-382-1222 (You must call from the number you want registered)
- Direct Marketing Association (to stop junk mail)
Mail Preference Service
P.O. Box 9008
Farmingdale, NY 11735
www.dmaconsumers.org
To request a free presentation on identity theft for your organization or community group, call the State Treasurer’s Office Financial Education Division at 312-814-1247.
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