Implementing Identity Theft Protection

The crime of identity theft is reaching epic proportions across the country, and in fact is one of the fastest growing crimes of this century. The FTC (Federal Trade Commission) records indicate that identity theft has been topping their list of consumer complaints for a few years already, accounting for more than 40% of all complaints filed with the FTC.

While identity theft is a crime, there is another fact that is sometimes overlooked which is a direct result of this crime, which is the financial loss. That loss is estimated to exceed $50 billion annually for a combination of consumers and businesses, which makes it one of the most costly crimes on record.

When most people think of identity theft, they may associate that with using one's credit card for an online purchase over the Internet. But in reality, the Internet is not associated with this crime in a surprisingly high number of reported cases, and that as much as 70% of ID theft cases stem from being an "inside job". What this means is that an employee or former employee of a business or company is the thief, and this could even be at places where you normally shop today.

Further investigation into this crime shows that in more than 25% of reported cases, the victim knew or was related to the thief. This is not merely a misunderstanding between family members, but rather are actual reported cases where the crime was committed with malicious intent.

People today are far too free with giving out their personal information to whoever claims to need it, like even the clerk at the grocery store checkout. They do not need nor have any right to know your personal information, and if you give it to them, ask to see their written policy as to how that information will be used.

The key to your personal information is your social security number, and you should never carry your social security card in your purse or wallet in case it gets stolen. There are very few occasions when you need to have that information available if you don't have your number memorized, so do not carry your card with you.

If you spend any time in online email, you have undoubtedly seen the email that alleges to be from your bank, saying they had a security breach and need to have you click this link to verify some information. Never ever click that link. This is a common practice known as "phishing" and even though that web site may look like your bank's, rest assured it is not and any information you divulge there will fall into bad hands. If you have doubts about such an email, contact the fraud department at your bank and ask them about it.

There are many other common sense things you should do to protect yourself against identity theft, but the bottom line is to not give out your personal information. There is usually not a good reason for someone else to have that information, and you are your own best resource in terms of protecting it.

Article Source: http://www.rightbiz.com

Jay Anderson is a recognized authority on Identity Theft Protection and invites you to visit his web site to learn more about protecting yourself from identity theft at www.idtheftprotectiontips.com

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