What is Identity Theft and How Can I Protect Myself
The term identity theft, which is stealing and using someone else’s identity, was coined in 1964. It has also been called impersonation, identity fraud, and identity cloning. Identity theft has become more popular in the past few years because of the growing popularity of the Internet. It now easier to steal someone else’s identity and it is now harder to catch an identity theft. This makes it even more important to understand what identity theft is, and what we can do to protect ourselves.
Identity theft has been around long before the internet. At first the identity thieft usually found the necessary information by going through other people’s garbage. Then soon after phones were invented, phone scams came into existence. Now that there are computers, the Internet, and electronic gadgets, all being used to store personal information, identity theft has become the fastest growing crime.
Someone might want to steal someone else’s identity to obtain credit, goods, or services at the victim’s expense. This is one of the most common reasons for identity theft. Also, criminals hiding from authorities or someone wanting to hide from creditors may steal someone’s identity so they themselves can stay anonymous. Also, sometimes people use another identity to obtain medicine or medical services. This can result in errors in the victim’s medical record. Illegal immigrants might steal someone’s identity so they can live and work within the country.
Individuals who steal another person’s identity first need to get information on that person. They do so by looking in their trash for papers they may have thrown away that contains personal information. They may also steal their bank cards, passports, ID cards, checks, or other personal belongings, or they might look over someone’s shoulder as they punch in their passwords at the ATM or at a public computer. This is referred to as shoulder surfing. They also may be able to find information on the person’s computer, phone, flash drive, PDA, or other electronic devices. Sometimes they hack into the person’s computer. They might also post fake jobs online and require an application in which they ask for personal information. They might even find some information they can use from what the person has posted on social networking sites.
Luckily, it is possible to protect yourself against identity theft. Some of the ways to protect yourself include doing online shopping only at sites that you know and trust, bringing in your mail as soon as possible, and having anti-virus and anti-spyware software installed on your computer. Choose good passwords for all your online accounts such as e-mails, auction sites, online bank accounts, and online payment accounts. A good password should have lowercase letters, upper case letters, and numbers. Depending on the site, they may also allow dashes, underscores, and other special characters. Also, never give out personal information on the phone, chat rooms, or suspicious websites. Also, be careful not to post too much personal information on social networking sites . You also should not leave papers lying around that have personal information on them, such as checks, credit card statements, and bank receipts. If you want to dispose of such documents, don’t just throw them in the trash. Instead shred them in a paper shredder or burn them. Even if you take precautions, you might still become a victim of identity theft. If you do, you can report it by calling your bank and credit card companies, and by filing a report with the police. Identity Theft is serious and it could damage your life.
Mark Clayborne is a Certified Credit Consultant with ten years of experience assisting consumers with credit issues. If you liked this article, then please sign up to read the first chapter of Hidden Credit Repair Secrets and get a Free Restore your Credit E-class at http://www.hiddencreditrepairsecrets.com This article may be freely reprinted or distributed in its entirety in any Ezine, newsletter, blog, or website. The author’s name, bio and website links must remain intact and be included with every reproduction.
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