Identity theft can be as simple as losing your Facebook account, or Fisher as serious as someone to assume your identity. This is a real and serious problem. According to Javelin Strategy & Research, the problem more than 11 million Americans in 2009. This means that you have more chances to get your identity stolen than win jackpot lottery.
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If you're lucky, it will not cause you much more than a few phone calls to troubleshoot.But most likely will destroy your credit and finance, and cause you time and money: the easiest way to protect you from identity theft is to simply enroll in credit monitoring and protection of the individual, but they cost money. Fortunately there are many simple things you can do to reduce your chances of becoming a victim.
Your purse and wallet
I know some people how to do everything they can in their purse or wallet. This can be useful, but it can easily turns into a nightmare if you lose your wallet or billfold with "life" in it. Do not carry more than you need in your purse or wallet.For example, do not carry a card, social security number or your social security number, do not carry more than one or two credit cards at a time and do not carry a PIN for your ATM and credit cards.
Avoid dubious stores and online merchants
I often see super good deals from stores or Web sites, I've never heard it before but before turning on the deal, check them out on sites like the better Business Bureau. You should also search the store name and add the word "complaints", "issue" or "scam".
Basic privacy
Your social security number and date of birth, you can unlock a lot of great information and give thieves access to your personal and financial lives.To help you protect the data, never give them without understanding why it is necessary to do never use them as part of your username or password and avoid using your actual birthday on different social sites.
Regularly review your credit report and scores
You can get one free credit report annually from each of the three credit bureaus with annualcreditreport.com. You can also easily get your free credit score from many websites. Things to look out for in your credit reports include suspicious accounts, activities and addresses that you don't recognize.
[Visit my money USA news blog for the best advice money from around the Web.]
Review your credit card statements and account statements
Treat your application does not protect you from identity theft pros who opens up totally new accounts and statements by mail elsewhere.But it's still a good idea to review your credit card statement, because it will help protect you from minor theft--someone uses your credit card to pay for purchases.
Cross shred any document that contains confidential information
One thing I always keep on hand in my Office, a good cross shred Shredder. you should never cause any document containing confidential information, along with your regular garbage, because someone can dive in and take your Recycle bin information. best way to get rid of these cross shred, and recycle confetti.These documents include credit cards, credit applications, tax, accounting and invoicing--anything that contains personal information.
Keep a list of all of your account number and contact information in a safe place
Invest in a document securely store all your important documents in one place. make a list of your account number, for example, credit, debit, and ATM cards with telephone numbers.If you lose your wallet, you can easily use the list to invite all banks and credit card companies to put your account.
Attention to your emails
You should delete the emails from your mailbox daily. If you live a fill area, you can get a mailbox that can be locked and only available to you: Yes, it's a federal crime to steal emails, but that doesn't stop identity thieves from doing it anyway.
Use strong user names and passwords
In addition to not use personal information as part of your user names and passwords, you should also learn how to build a strong user names and passwords in addition, avoid using the same username and password for all accounts online.
[Hits personal finance u.s. news site for more insight and money management tips].
Do not click on links in email
One of the most popular ways to get you from your identity is called phishing. using this method, phishers send you official-looking email with masked link, please log in to your account when you click on the link you made official looking website, but to a different URL when you enter your login and password, the thief has the information necessary to access your account: do not click on links in email, especially when the URL is different from the site, you were expecting a better site visit is by entering the URL manually.
Of course there are a few things you can do, but they should save you the trouble of 99% of problems if you have other tips that are not listed here, please share them in the comments section below.
Pinyo owns Moolanomy personal finance blog that covers a wide range of personal finance and investment topics, with features that include reviews, comparisons and Q&A sections.
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