Identity Theft ?
Thursday, March 4th, 2010 at
1:59 am
Is there any place, business, organization, ect. that offers protection from identity theft? If so, do they really work?
Detox Diets
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* Minimize the risk. Be careful about sharing personal information or letting it circulate freely.
* When you are asked to provide personal information, ask how it will be used, why it is needed, who will be sharing it and how it will be safeguarded.
* Give out no more than the minimum, and carry the least possible with you.
* Be particularly careful about your SIN; it is an important key to your identity, especially in credit reports and computer databases.
* Don’t give your credit card number on the telephone, by electronic mail, or to a voice mailbox, unless you know the person with whom you’re communicating or you initiated the communication yourself, and you know that the communication channel is secure.
* Take advantage of technologies that enhance your security and privacy when you use the Internet, such as digital signatures, data encryption, and “anonymizing” services.
* Pay attention to your billing cycle. If credit card or utility bills fail to arrive, contact the companies to ensure that they have not been illicitly redirected.
* Notify creditors immediately if your identification or credit cards are lost or stolen.
* Access your credit report from a credit reporting agency once a year to ensure it’s accurate and doesn’t include debts or activities you haven’t authorized or incurred.
* Ask that your accounts require passwords before any inquiries or changes can be made, whenever possible.
* Choose difficult passwords – not your mother’s maiden name. Memorise them, change them often. Don’t write them down and leave them in your wallet, or some equally obvious place.
* Key in personal identification numbers privately when you use direct purchase terminals, bank machines, or telephones.
* Find out if your cardholder agreement offers protection from credit card fraud; you may be able to avoid taking on the identity thief’s debts.
* Be careful what you throw out. Burn or shred personal financial information such as statements, credit card offers, receipts, insurance forms, etc. Insist that businesses you deal with do the same.