How to Prevent Identity Theft

Unfortunately, there is no sure prevention, but there are actions to take that limit the damage someone who abuses your name and credit can do.

• Order a copy of your credit report. An amendment to the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act requires each of the major nationwide consumer reporting companies to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months.

  • To order your free annual report from one or all the national consumer reporting companies, go to www.annualcreditreport.com or call their toll-free number - (877) 322-8228.

• Limit your credit cards – periodically go through your cards and cancel those you do not absolutely need or use on a regular basis. Sign the back of cards you do keep with permanent ink.

• Write down all your credit card numbers and the phone number to contact in case of loss or theft and store in a safe place.

• Make a copy of your driver’s license and your Social Security Card and store them with the credit card list. Better yet, place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine. Copy both sides of each license, credit card, etc. You will know what you had in your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to call and cancel. Keep the photocopy in a safe place.

• Contact one of the credit report companies. Ask them to put a statement on your credit report that says, “Do not issue credit to anyone without contacting me personally”. You will need to supply a list of items to get this service including a phone bill with your name, address and phone number on it and a copy of your driver’s license and a copy of your Social Security Card.

• Do not give out personal information on the phone, through the mail, or on the Internet, unless you initiate the contact or are sure you know with whom you are dealing. Identity thieves have posed as representatives of banks, Internet service providers (ISPs), and even government agencies to get people to reveal their Social Security number, mother's maiden name, account numbers, and other identifying information. Before you share any personal information, confirm that you are dealing with a legitimate organization. Check an organization's website by typing its URL in the address line, rather than cutting and pasting it. Many companies post fraud alerts when their name is used improperly. Alternatively, call customer service using the number listed on your account statement or in the telephone book.

• Do not carry your Social Security number card; leave it in a secure place. Give your Social Security number only when necessary, and ask to use other types of identifiers. If your state uses your Social Security number as your driver's license number, ask to substitute another number. This applies if your health insurance company uses your Social Security number as your policy number as well.

• If you pay with a credit card, mark out your card number on the receipt that contains your name, card, card number and signature on it. It’s too easy for a thief to take advantage of if they get a hold of it. Shred everything that contains personal information.

• Never have your Social Security number printed on your checks.

• Opt out of pre-screening of your credit reports. The number to call is 1 888 567-8688 (1 888 5OPTOUT). It requires one single call for all three credit bureaus. This will stop the arrival of pre-approved credit card offers in your mailbox. Those pre-approved offers are dangerous. It is easy for someone to steal your mail or simply submit a change of address to divert your pre-approved offers to a mailbox accessible by a thief.

• Be cautious when responding to promotions. Identity thieves may create phony promotional offers to get you to give them your personal information.

• Be on guard in your home. Secure personal information in your home, especially if you have roommates, employ outside help, or are having work done in your home.

• Treat your mail carefully. Deposit your outgoing mail in post office collection boxes or at your local post office, rather than in an unsecured mailbox. Promptly remove mail from your mailbox. If you are planning to be away from home and cannot pick up your mail, call the U.S. Postal Service at 1 800 275-8777 to request a vacation hold. The Postal Service will hold your mail at your local post office until you can pick it up or are home to receive it.

• Treat your trash carefully. To thwart an identity thief who may pick through your trash or recycling bins to capture your personal information, tear or shred your charge receipts, copies of credit applications, insurance forms, physician statements, checks and bank statements, expired charge cards that you're discarding, and credit offers you get in the mail.

• Ask about information security procedures in your workplace or at businesses, doctor's offices or other institutions that collect your personally identifying information. Find out who has access to your personal information and verify that they handle it in a secure manner. Ask about the disposal procedures for those records as well. Find out if they share your information with anyone else. If so, ask how they will keep your information confidential.

• More organizations are offering consumers choices about how their personal information is used. For example, many let you "opt out" of having your information shared with others or used for marketing purposes.

• Some companies offer insurance or similar products that claim to give you protection against the costs associated with resolving an identity theft case. Be aware that most creditors will only deal with you to resolve problems, so the insurance company in most cases will not be able to reduce that burden. As with any product or service, make sure you understand what you are getting before you buy. If you decide to buy an identity theft insurance product, check out the company with your local Better Business Bureau, consumer protection agency and state Attorney General to see if they have any complaints on file.

Finally, below are some helpful points related to your computer:

• Update virus protection software regularly. Install patches for your operating system and other software programs to protect against intrusions and infections that can lead to the compromise of your computer files or passwords. Ideally, you should set virus protection software to update automatically each week. The Windows XP operating system also can be set to automatically check for patches and download them to your computer.

• Do not open files sent to you by strangers, or click on hyperlinks or download programs from people you do not know. Be careful about using file-sharing programs. Opening a file could expose your system to a computer virus or a program known as "spyware," which could capture your passwords or any other information as you type it into your keyboard.

• Use a firewall program, especially if you use a high-speed Internet connection like cable, DSL or T-1 that leaves your computer connected to the Internet 24 hours a day. The firewall program will allow you to stop uninvited access to your computer. Without it, hackers can take over your computer, access the personal information stored on it, or use it to commit other crimes.

• Use a secure browser – software that encrypts or scrambles information you send over the Internet – to guard your online transactions. Be sure your browser has the most up-to-date encryption capabilities by using the latest version available from the manufacturer. You also can download some browsers at no cost over the Internet. When submitting information, look for the "lock" icon on the browser's status bar to be sure your information is secure during transmission.

• If you store financial information on a computer that is accessible to others, use a strong password with a combination of letters (upper and lower case), numbers and symbols. Do not use an automatic login feature that saves your user name and password, and always log off when you are finished.

• Before you dispose of a computer, delete all the personal information it stored. Deleting files using the keyboard or mouse commands or reformatting your hard drive may not be enough because the files may stay on the computer's hard drive, where a thief can easily retrieve them. Use a "wipe" utility program to overwrite the entire hard drive.

• Look for website privacy policies. They should answer questions about maintaining accuracy, access, security, and control of personal information collected by the site. They should also state how they will use the information, and whether they provide it to third parties. If you do not see a privacy policy or if you cannot understand it, take your business elsewhere.