Identity Theft Tips

If you’re a victim of identity theft, you need to get new credit cards, new account numbers and possibly a new driver’s license, but in most cases you won’t need to get a new Social Security number. This is because many times the thieves don’t even need that number to open accounts in your name and consequently didn’t go through the effort of obtaining it. If this happened to you consider yourself lucky. If you don’t need to change our number, don’t bother. It is a boatload of hassle.

However, even if you don’t want to jump through the hoops, there are times when you absolutely need to get a new Social. One case, of just such a need, is the example of Jeff Goldsmith of Indiana. Jeff was actually arrested on suspicion of a felony and thrown in jail because an alleged criminal used his Social Security number. He sat in prison for an hour and a half before authorities were able to clear him of the charges.

Jeff says he is going to change his Social Security number and it is certainly not a bad idea. First of all, the current number may still be tied to the crime in some records. Secondly, there’s no telling who else has access to the information or may even be using it too.

If you end up in a situation like Jeff’s and you have to get a new number, go through the Social Security Administration directly. Never trust a third party. You can’t change your number on a whim. You have to prove that it was used fraudulently.

Bring the following with you to the Social Security office:
• Evidence of abuse of your number, such as a police report
• Documents that prove your citizenship status, date of birth and identity
• Proof of a name change if you legally changed it in court or got married

Your documents must be originals or certified copies to be admissible. If the office needs to keep them, a representative will make sure they are returned to you. Once you present your evidence of abuse and your identifying documents you’ll be asked to fill out a new Social Security Card application.

Why do you have to prove you were a victim of fraud involving your Social Security number specifically to get a new number? If the thief didn’t use your number, it probably won’t do you any good, first of all. Secondly, imagine how many criminals would love to get new Social Security numbers just for the asking.

If you can’t get a new Social Security number and you’re worried about becoming victimized again, the next best thing you can do is get identity theft protection. Then you have several sets of eyes, both electronic and human, keeping a close watch on your credit file to get you notified of any new fraud right away. Several of these services even compensate you for the time you take off work to get everything back to the way it should be and others even offer million-dollar insurance policies or guarantees to help you recover money lost due to your identity theft case.

There’s another way thieves can get your personal information, besides hacking into computer networks or digging through your mailbox. They can find it when you post it, voluntarily, on the Web. Now you may be thinking there’s no way anyone would plaster their account information in a public forum. But you could basically be doing that just by posting on social networking sites or message boards. How? By telling online friends specific details about your life.

It’s a fact that many if not most individuals use passwords that relate to their daily lives since they’re easier to remember and your online profile could have scads of this information, such as where you live, your name and the names of family members, your birth date, your occupation and even the type of pets you own. Once he or she gets access to your posts, all a potential identity thief has to do is some basic trial and error to come up with passwords you might use. You may remember that this is how a hacker got into Vice Presidential Candidate Sarah Palin’s email account before the 2008 election – simply by guessing her password. More sophisticated thieves run software that check against virtually every word in the english dictionary. This is why it is important to have identity theft protection.

So how does figuring out a password translate into identity theft? Easy. Once a thief has access to one of your accounts, even if it’s just your Yahoo email account, he or she is well on the way to being able to become you for all financial intents and purposes. All the thief has to do is wait for an online banking statement to roll in or an order confirmation that has your credit card number and expiration date on it. If neither one of these incidents occur, he or she can just use the forgot password function for any site where you’re a member to get more usernames and passwords sent to that email address, since in most cases the security questions also involve personal details, such as your mother’s maiden name.

This is why there is a huge push for people to use complex passwords on even the most mundane of accounts. For example, instead of using the name of the street you live on, think of something you love about that street. Perhaps you love that the neighbors are so friendly. Use this for your password by making it “tnasf”, the first letter from each word of – the neighbors are so friendly. Then stick a couple numbers or special characters on the end to stump a thief even further. Remember, it is never a good idea to use a word found in the dictionary. Also, never use the same password for all of your accounts. If a thief is able to guess one of them, you don’t want him or her to be able to go whole hog, so to speak.

If you have trouble remembering all of these passwords, you can save them in a secure area on your computer. Then you only need to remember one password: the one you need to access that file. Also, some identity theft protection services such as Identity Guard offer you the option to let them save your passwords for you. You can access them easily either online or through your cell phone by entering a secret personal identification number. Again, you’ll still have to remember one on your own, but it’s certainly easier than recalling dozens. You may also want to look at other software programs that can manage your passwords securely for you.

Those tax return documents that you’re advised to keep for three to seven years in case you get audited contain lots of information identity thieves would love to get their hands on: your date of birth, your place of employment and your Social Security number. You can’t shred them and get rid of them because the IRS may come a knockin’, and, unfortunately, you can’t prevent their existence by just not paying your taxes. Well you can, but it is really not a good idea.

If you have the documents in paper form, here are some tips to follow:
• Place them all in a manila folder and put them in a locked filing cabinet or stick them in a safe deposit box.
• Get rid of any extra copies of the forms using the shredder. Keeping extras only increases the chance that they will get lost or “disappear.”
• Make sure to secure the documents for other family members too. It’s best to put them all in the same place.

If you are one of those tech-savvy people or paper-savers that would rather save your tax forms on your computer, follow these tips instead:
• Don’t save them on a public computer. This doesn’t just mean one at the library. It also means your work machine or one that you share with roommates.
• Delete the files from the machine if you ever have to take it in for repairs.
• Erase the contents of your hard drive with professional software before selling it or destroy it.
• Call the files something besides “2009 taxes,” or anything similar, so that even if a thief gets a hold of your machine it won’t be obvious that he or she should look for this information.
• Password protect your machine, or at least your user profile, and keep your security software updated.
• Never save them using an online storage system, since these can be hacked fairly easily.
• Don’t send them to anyone through email, not even a person you’re filing jointly with. Thieves have a way of interception such information.

Not sure why secure storage is such a big issue? Try the fact that over than 313,000 identity theft complaints were filed in 2008 and that the FTC estimates 9.9 million victims in 2008. That number is expected to be even higher this year. Remember, the more information of yours that a thief has, the more damage he or she has the potential to do.

Thieves have bought cars, boats and even houses using other people’s personal information. They have also committed crimes, gotten medical treatment and planned terrorist acts. This is not something to simply shove under the rug and ignore. In fact, you may want to consider getting an identity theft protection service.

Identity thieves are not people to be dealt with lightly. They certainly will not offer you, your family and lots of other people they don’t know from Adam the same courtesy. Okay, any courtesy at all. Protect your documents and you good name from these scoundrels.

By Scott Stevenson, CEO of Eliminate ID Theft

Lets face it: Filing taxes can be confusing, no matter how you look at it. The stimulus payments just add to the complexity of the task. People don’t know whether the stimulus checks they received in 2008 are taxed, and about 15 percent of those who already submitted their tax returns have made “recovery rebate credit” mistakes. To make matters worse, thieves and fraud artists are capitalizing on this chaos by scamming unsuspecting taxpayers into revealing their financial information and using it to steal their identity.

With the tax code and stimulus checks and the poor economy, we are entering uncharted territory as it relates to exposure to identity theft crimes. I can equip you with the valuable information you need to protect your identity and prevent what’s intended as a positive thing—the stimulus checks—from turning into a disaster. Below, are some tips for avoiding tax return/stimulus check scams.

Filing Taxes Online:
– Make sure both your work and home computers have updated firewall, anti-spyware and antivirus programs to protect them from hackers seeking your information.
– Choose a tax-filing service you’re familiar with, preferably one that’s listed as approved on www.irs.gov/efile. Also make sure the Web site is encrypted.
– Beware of phony e-mails that appear to be from the IRS. These are often phishing scams intended to gather personal and financial information. If you receive a message like this, do not open it. Immediately forward it to [email protected]. This message can contain viruses harmful to your computer, or simply be a phishing scam. Not only can the information be used to steal personal and financial information, but it could also provide a thief with all they need to intercept your economic stimulus check or even to steal your identity.
– Change your computer password often, especially this time of year.

Filing Taxes By Mail:
– If you hire someone to do your taxes for you, be sure to check their credentials and references to make sure they are reputable.
– Be aware that W-2s and all documents containing sensitive information should arrive by mail by March 2. If you haven’t received them by then, contact the IRS at 800.829.1040, as they may have been stolen.
– When you mail the completed forms in, wrap them in an extra sheet of paper to ensure they’re not visible through the envelope.
– Mail these forms directly from the post office; a raised mailbox flag alerts thieves to outgoing checks.

How can you tell if your information has been compromised?
Look for:
– More than one return was filed in your Social Security Number
– Your notice indicates that you received wages from an employer unknown to you

If you suspect Fraud:
– Respond only to the name, address, and number printed on the IRS notice.
– Notify the IRS Identity Protection Specialized Unit by calling 800-908-4490.
– Report the fraud by calling the FTC identity theft hotline at 877-438-4338.

For more information or to trust your safety to the experts, contact Eliminate ID Theft at www.eliminateidtheft.com.

While identity thieves don’t care much about who they’re taking personal information from, a 2008 Javelin Research study cites that women are victimized 26 percent more often. It’s not because women tend to shop more than men overall, as some may suspect, but because women tend to shop less online and more in person.

How does this lead to a greater likelihood of identity theft, you may ask. It’s because brick and mortar stores have yet to catch up with online marketplaces as far as information security is concerned. While some stores still scan credit cards using manual methods, online shops are adding SSL encryption, enhanced passwords and other high-tech safeguards.

Another interesting statistic from Javelin is that women took almost twice as long as men to realize they had been victimized. This delay, which averaged 83 days, gave identity thieves more time to make fraudulent charges on their accounts. It also gave them time to leave the country to further escape detection.

So, what is a girl to do to protect herself from identity theft?  Simple. Sign up for an identity theft protection service such as LifeLock, TrustedID or Identity Guard. This way you will be notified before any new accounts or credit is extended in your name and will be able to deny any fraudulent transactions.

Javelin says that 23 percent of men take advantage of email alerts of unusual activity on their accounts, while only 15 percent of women do. An even smaller percentage of women, only three percent, use text messages for a similar purpose. Such a service will let them know right away if their accounts have been compromised and hopefully shrink that 83 days down to 83 minutes. Another good idea is a credit monitoring service, which keeps a close eye on the user’s credit report. It allows the user to get notifications of new accounts, not just fraudulent charges on existing ones.

Switching not to shopping online, but instead to banking online, can also help women keep track of their accounts better, since it lets them view their balances in real time anytime instead of having to visit their financial institutions or at least make a phone call. This gives them a better idea of what their balances should be so that they can easily detect any changes a thief might make, whether that is charging a $30,000 car or a $30 leaf blower.

This doesn’t mean that men can rest easy. There are still millions of male identity theft victims each year. They need to keep an eye on their accounts too and not sit back on their laurels. After all, all the online security in the world won’t make a bit of a difference if a thief finds an intact account statement sitting outside in the recycling bin. It also won’t matter if a thief decides to look over his shoulder while he uses the ATM and nabs his PIN.

So what am I saying? Be vigilant, no matter what your gender. To an identity thief you’re just a number even if other statistics matter to the research company. The group of identity theft victims is growing larger all the time and that is one party that you don’t want to be invited to.