 Call
your bank and/or credit card company?
Contact
the three major credit repositories?
Go
through the helpful but expensive steps recommended by the Federal
Trade Commission in it's 30-page consumer support publication?
Fill
out and submit the affidavit form supplied by the FTC to dispute new,
unauthorized accounts?
Spend
on average $1,500 in out-of-pocket expenses and an average of 175 hours
in your efforts to resolve the many problems caused by identity thieves?
OR, with the Identity Theft ShieldSM:
Get regular monitoring of your credit report and let the proven leaders
in the identity restoration and legal services fields assist you. It's
no secret: Identity theft is a major problem in America.
Do
you hand your credit card to servers at restaurants?
Do
you sign your credit cards?
Do
you supply personal information over the Internet?
Do
you keep your Social Security number in your wallet or purse?
Do
you leave mail at your home or business for the postal carrier to collect?
Do
you shred unwanted mail with personal information?
ID Theft - Learn To Protect Your Credit
Identity theft claims millions of victims in the United States every
year. Identity theft rings operate from the U.S. or from other countries.
They are sophisticated in their methods of stealing personal information
and use the information to run up credit card accounts, empty bank accounts
and open false accounts. How do these thieves operate, and what can
you do if you become a victim of identity theft?
There are many ways people
can steal your identity. The most obvious one is stealing your wallet
or purse. However, you might not be aware of the other ways:
1. Taking your mail from your mailbox
2. Sending a fake change of address to the post office to have your mail delivered
to an identity thief
3. Digging through your garbage can to get old checks, bills, credit card applications,
etc.
4. Watching you put your ATM number into the machine
5. Hacking into your computer to get your account information
6. Telephoning you to get personal information by "verifying" an account
7. Breaking into your car to get mail, credit cards or other items with account
information
8. Putting ads into the newspaper for fake loans
9. Sending e-mails that purport to be from legitimate companies.
10. Order your 3-BUREAU CREDIT REPORT at least once a year
11. Pay your bills online
Now that you know some of the ways identity thieves and theft rings
operate, what can you do to protect yourself?
1. Never carry your Social Security card in your purse or wallet
unless you need it for a specific purpose on a specific day.
2. Keep your Social Security card, credit card applications (pre-approved),
credit card or ATM PIN number notifications and extra credit cards or cards
you don't use regularly under lock and key in your home.
3. Never give out personal information over the phone to someone you don't know.
Mortgage companies, credit card companies and banks do not call you for personal
information.
4. Never click on links in e-mails asking you to "verify" your account
information.
5. Do not print your driver's license number, social security number, address
or phone number on your checks. Verify your information when you write a check
by using your driver's license. Pick up your new checks at the bank instead
of having them mailed to you.
6. Destroy credit card receipts you don't want to keep by shredding them.
If you should become a victim of identity
theft, perform the following actions immediately:
1. File a report with your local sheriff or police
2. Contact all credit card companies
3. Call your bank and cancel your accounts
4. Call anyone to whom you've written a check that hasn't cleared and explain
the situation. Then issue a new check from your new bank account
5. Write any other creditors that may be affected
6. Get in touch with the Federal Trade Commision ID theft division and your
local BBB to report these thieves.
|
