Credit Card Fraud And Identity Theft
How You Can Protect Yourself You can hardly read a publication or listen to the news these days without hearing something about the rise in identity fraud. Identity fraud used to establish new accounts could take months to surface. Most experts agree that the highest percentage of identity fraud is still a person-to-person theft, such as an unscrupulous store clerk taking account information from a check or a credit card number from a store receipt, rather than from the rising use of the Internet as a means of transacting business. Never give your social security number to anyone unless it is for a transaction at your request and you trust the institution requesting the information. Often the first time victims become aware of these new accounts is when they get collection notices, often for thousands upon thousands of dollars. Of the two, the use of existing accounts is usually detected much earlier, often by the credit card company noticing a change in spending habits and contacting the victim, or upon receipt of the first bill with fraudulant charges, and is easier to clear up. For any papers that you do not wish to keep in your files, Shred all that contain your credit card account numbers, investment account numbers, bank account numbers, your phone number, your social security number. The average dollar loss per victim doubled over that of the year 2005. It's worth a trip to the post office or UPS store to insure that your checks go to the right place and are not intercepted by thieves. Take advantage of the free yearly credit report offered by the big three credit reporting agencies; Experian, Equifax and Trans Union. This insures that your liability is minimal if you should become a victim of identity theft. Another safeguard is to go paperless. You are lured into this scheme by the promise of 10% of the money that you then forward from your account to other accounts. . Do your banking online instead of writing checks. Finally, always make sure you know what your identity theft protection is
