Recent advances in technology have helped to streamline and
improve the lives of people all over the world. With a swipe of the card we can
rent movies, pay for gas, order take out, and much more. Even using your credit
or debit cards at stores can be dangerous as we all witnessed with the Target
breach, in which up to 70 million individuals may be affected (www. corporate.target.com
). The same information management technology that we use every day to enhance
our lives is also used by criminals to commit identity theft.
Photo credit: The Digerati life
There is a new identity fraud victim every two seconds in
2013 according to latest Javelin Strategy & Research Study. Just recently Russian criminals have stolen over 1.2 billion usernames and passwords.
Identity theft is the use of personal identifying
information such as birth date, social security number, or mother's maiden name
to commit fraud. This type of fraud can range from using a stolen identity to
get a credit card under another person's name to intercepting an electronic
transaction and having the funds deposited into an unauthorized account. Not to
mention what it can do to your credit. Often time's identity fraud can be more
devastating and invasive than having your home broken into.
The following tips
are some simple practices that you can implement to safe guard yourself against
identity theft:
#1 Never click on an
unknown e-mail link! Beware of 'Phishers' pronounced Fishers, whom attempt to
capture your personal information by sending you emails that look like they are
coming from a reputable company that you do business with. According to money.cnn.com article by James O'Tool and Jose Bagliery, the Russian criminals will most likely try to send you a bogus link to order from, "There's no need to panic at this point -- Hold Security, the firm that discovered the theft, says the gang isn't in the business of stealing your bank account information. Instead, they make their money by sending out spam for bogus products like weight-loss pills."
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Always call and question the purpose for the
verification if you think that the email might be legitimate.
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Make sure
that the link takes you to the official site of the company that you have an
account with. If not, leave the page by using the x in the corner of the page
to close the window.
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Effective use of your spam filters, firewalls,
and routers can further minimize your exposure.
#2 Beware of Malware,
which is any type of computer program that is designed to infect your computer
to monitor and record information going in or out of the system. A spyware
program or a virus may be designed specifically to capture your banking
information when you make a transaction online.
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Usually, malware appears in the form of a pop up
window or random link that appears while surfing the net. If you click anywhere
on the window, other than the x in the upper right hand corner to close the
window, you are basically granting permission to have your computer infected.
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Other forms of malware can infect your computer
when you download programs or music from the internet with spyware secretly
attached.
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The FDIC, or Federal Deposit Insurance Company,
suggests you should always be cautious of websites that you and your family
visit.
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If you are going to download music or programs
from the internet, only do so from reputable sites.
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Reading all licensing agreements carefully is
also a good idea to make sure that you are not being tricked into agreeing to
allow malware onto your computer. To make sure that the information you are
transmitting is secure, look for the beginning of the web address to start with
https://, the 's' means secure.
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Or look for the gold lock on the bottom right
hand corner of most browsers. This is also an indication that the information
you are sharing is secure.
#3 Shred documents
with important information. Any credit card applications, bank
statements, etc. that has account numbers, social security numbers, or
invitation numbers should be shredded and not just thrown away.
#4 Protect with
Passwords! Many times identity thieves will attempt to gain access to
your existing online accounts.
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Avoid using easily available information like
your mother's maiden name, your birth date, the last four digits of your SSN or
your phone number, or a series of consecutive numbers.
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When opening new accounts, you may find that
many businesses still have a line on their applications for your mother's
maiden name. Ask if you can use a password instead. Make any passwords or
answers to 'secret questions' something that only you could know.
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Changing some of your more important account
passwords from time to time can't hurt either. If one of your normal passwords
does not work when trying to access an account, make sure to call the company
that you have the account with immediately to check for unauthorized
transactions.
#5 Keep an eye on
your accounts!
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Review all of your statements each month
carefully. Look for anything out of the ordinary or unauthorized.
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Check your credit report as well for any
irregularities.
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You should also be careful who you share
information with. Don't give out personal information on the phone, through the
mail, or on the Internet unless you've initiated the contact or are sure you
know who you're dealing with.
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Before you share any personal information,
confirm that you are dealing with a legitimate organization. I recommend calling
them back on a line that you know is linked to the company.
#6 Act quickly if
you see unusual activity on your account! Hopefully you will
never be a victim of identity theft, however if you do, the sooner you take
action the more you will be able to contain any damage that is being done.
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Contact the company that provides the credit
account and notify their fraud department. This should automatically freeze the
account until the discrepancy can be investigated.
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Contact one of the three major credit bureaus
and have a fraud alert placed on your account with (contacting one will alert
all three).
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Document all of the conversations and
correspondences that you have with the credit bureaus and companies where the
fraudulent activities occurred.
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File a police report and get a copy of the
report for your records.
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Report the fraud to the appropriate state
agencies and the FTC directly at www.consumer.gov/idtheft.
According to the Identity Theft Resource Center, the average
victim of identity theft spends an average of more than $1400 dollars in out of
pocket expenses to correct the situation. This means that prevention really
does pay off.
For more details on the Russian Mafia's stolen information, and what to do if you have been hacked please visit CNNs link below.
