Certain commercials aired on national television depict identity theft by displaying a heavy set, hairy man speaking in a high pitched, feminine voice. Real identity theft pertains to when someone uses another individual’s personal information to obtain lines of credit for the purpose of fraudulent purchasing power.

The media and Hollywood generally have a way of hyping up certain situations to make them seem of more importance than they actually are. However, identity theft stands as something of actual importance and has become predominant in ever increasing instances within recent years.

How Do I Verify Security on the Website?

There exist one rule you should apply to shopping at any online store, business or manufacturer and this pertains to verifying the site will provide an encrypted connection to secure your personal information in transit. In order to prevent identity theft, you’ll want to make sure the site has a yellow, lock symbol somewhere on the website to indicate a secure connection is present.

If the website doesn’t have the traditional security sense of a locked symbol somewhere on the page, you may look in the website’s core code for the presence of an HTTPS address. To find this information, right click the website with your mouse, select the properties tab and look for the “s” to indicate secure transmission of data over the Internet.

People will encounter situations for identity theft, even when visiting what they consider to be the most reliable online stores. If the website does not have any features displaying a secure connection to the server, look for a “1-800″ number to provide your personal information over the phone, instead of through a non-secure connection on the Internet.

It’s easier than ever for consumers to learn the lessons of protecting against identity theft the hard way, these days. Several get-rich-quick schemes, unreasonable offers and other types of schemes entice the victim to click on the fake websites and enter their personal information.

Of course, you shouldn’t write the Internet off as a bad medium to conduct any business on again in the future. Instead, become more familiar with security measures to protect you against identity theft and take advantage of the benefits in shopping online. Being an informed consumer won’t just help you avoid becoming a victim of identity theft, it will make you shop wisely in other parts of life, as well.

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Tip! Medical identity theft. Someone steals your identity and either obtains medical insurance in your name or uses your current medical insurance policy to obtain treatment or prescriptions.

How can we stop Identity Theft, which is growing each year and becoming one of the biggest concerns of the American People? What can our government do to curb these pirates of our data and thieves of our good names? What is to be done with regards to those who have already been victimized? How can we stop Internet Phishers and personal data thieves when more and more businesses and government agencies are checking up on the data to protect us from International Terrorism?

One thing our government is doing is creating a national identity theft task force and an executive order has already been signed by the President of the United States of America to see that it is done.

Tip! The moment you feel that there has been an identity theft, it is important to report the crime to the police. Provide all the requisite documented evidence.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/05/20060510-6.html

Some say it is about time and indeed it surely is and it appears our government will be rising to the occasion and going after these thieves once and for all. The task force plans on cracking down on criminals who steal folks identities, no matter where on the Planet they are hiding. This task force has some heavy hitters including the Attorney General and the Federal Trade Commission as Chair of the Task Force. Some say that the FTC is impotent unable to even curb the Viagra Spam in your email inbox, so how can they stop identity theft? Either way it will be nice to take a bite out of Identity Theft once and for all. Consider all this in 2006.

Tip! Social Security Number (SSN) identity theft. Someone steals your SSN and obtains employment in your name.

Lance Winslow

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Tip! Medical identity theft. Someone steals your identity and either obtains medical insurance in your name or uses your current medical insurance policy to obtain treatment or prescriptions.

How does one prevent identity theft from occurring in this era of information proliferation and electronic communication? Many people would think that some sort of email or computer-based solution is the best place to start–but really, a huge percentage of identity theft can be accomplished with nothing more than a watchful eye and some sticky fingers. Mailboxes, which generally contain personal information such as credit cards, bank statements, and checks, are a veritable treasure trove of personal information for identity thieves.

Thieves get a hold of fragments of personal information, which they then use to illicitly draw up large bills in your name. Many times, the source of this information is not your computer at all, but something far more pedestrian: your mailbox. Credit cards, checks, official documents–all this and more is found and stolen regularly from mailboxes all over the country.

Tip! Purchase identity theft insurance. This will cover any losses incurred while recovering your lost identity once a crook has stolen it.

The traditional mailbox design would seem to uphold the popular saying that if it’s not broke, you shouldn’t fix it. Unfortunately, the truth is that the current mailbox design is outdated, inefficient, and has been allowing a huge rise in mail and identity theft over the last few decades. In light of these facts, it seems that the time has come for a new method of receiving and storing mail.

Tip! It is important that you install a locked mailbox at your residence for enhanced identity theft protection.

The CurbVault

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Tip! Maintain services of Identity Theft Protection and Recovery Company. Better safe than sorry.

Gartner Research, a US based research company estimated that 57 million Americans had received spurious e-mail from hackers or cyber-thieves impersonating legitimate services.

They further estimate that nearly 11 million have clicked on the link in a phishing attack email and 3 percent of those attacked remember giving personal information to the thieves.

We are continually warned by banks, PayPal and others to avoid responding to these authentic looking ‘lures’, but how do we prevent ourselves from swallowing the bait? And even when we know a site is genuine, can we trust the operators with our details?

Tip! Social Security Number (SSN) identity theft. Someone steals your SSN and obtains employment in your name.

From Gartner’s figures and one’s personal experience it is obvious that such attempts at identity theft are undermining the confidence we place in our everyday email and internet transactions.

This has led to greater pressure on services to provide improved security and more involved processes for users to authenticate themselves.

Banks and financial services suffer direct losses from ID theft that cost US banks and card issuers about $1.2 billion last year, according to Gartner. We might add that these losses have to be met in the long run by consumers through fees and charges.

Tip! Ask your financial institutions to add extra identity theft protection to your account.

Large organizations have the resources to devise and implement sophisticated security measures to protect the ID of their customers. Where does that leave the ’small’ operators, such as the gold exchangers, merchant account operators, online auctions, etc?

Even where sophisticated systems are in place, we may still be vulnerable. Banks constantly warn about replying to hoax emails asking you to verify your details or opening virtual postcards.

Harder to spot are emails that may contain worms or Trojan viruses that can place spyware on your PC which may transmit information or give control to a remote user. Keystroke loggers, for example can record and send your passwords and logins to an invisible thief.

Tip! Purchase identity theft insurance. This will cover any losses incurred while recovering your lost identity once a crook has stolen it.

Keeping up to date with firewalls and virus protection programs that YOU install, is obviously an essential step that we can all take to improve our security.

Technology notwithstanding, the ultimate security lies with human actions.

Already we have seen a number of online e-money exchanges develop new procedures whereby we have to send them ID documentation often including photo ID, before we can use their services. Even the act of emailing scanned documents is not 100% secure. If hackers can access email accounts and intercept such transmissions then ID theft can occur without either the sender or receiver being able to prevent it.

This in itself raises further concerns.

Tip! Medical identity theft. Someone steals your identity and either obtains medical insurance in your name or uses your current medical insurance policy to obtain treatment or prescriptions.

In an attempt to make payments to local and international merchants, a customer can be putting himself at risk by passing on sensitive bank and personal ID information to companies who may or may not have suitable safeguards in place to protect that information.

Can you be certain what happens to that information you have given to numerous online companies?

Yes the online webpage is ‘encrypted’ and you feel it is ’secure’, but who has access to that information?

Can that MLM company or money exchanger keep your ID secure? Do they have responsibility to limit access to your information? If so how do they execute that responsibility?

Where are the safeguards? What eventually happens when I send a copy of my bank statement to someone I don’t know in Malaysia and that company disappears a few months later? Speaking from personal experience, this happened to me with the demise of a popular investment program. I wonder who now has that information. I have no way of knowing if it has been destroyed or sold on to those constructing fake ID’s. There were thousands of members who each gave names addresses, bank account details, passport and licence details. Why were we required to give them this level of information and proof of ID? The reason: Because they were trying to prevent theft and fraud by unscrupulous types. We never heard anymore from the company about our lost funds - no refunds, no apologies and no assurance about the fate of our records!

Tip! The third step to take if you believe you are a victim of identity theft is to file a police report. Request a copy of the report for your records and to send to creditors for verification of the crime.

A cynic might even be forgiven for thinking that some of the gold exchanges which seem to come and go with alarming rapidity, could be nothing more than elaborate fronts for the collection of consumer ID’s that could be on-sold who knows where.

If I decide to join similar programs in the future and decide to give them false ID as a form of protection, I have to join the shadowy world of secret offshore accounts complex and costly money transacting. I then leave myself open to the likelihood of increased scrutiny from authorities. I do not believe this is an option for the average person with limited funds.

Tip! It is important that you install a locked mailbox at your residence for enhanced identity theft protection.

In their response to organised crime and potential terrorist funding, governments restrict the easy transfer of cash from one place to another.

Understandably, in order to comply with regulations covering the tracking of the movement of money abroad, money exchanges need to be able to identify users and exclude unscrupulous money launderers as far as possible, but without improved internal security measures how can the average user feel safe? The recent demise of such providers as Intgold and Stormpay does nothing to reassure us.

Just to be clear, In general I have no problem with paying online. What should concern us is the (lack of) security of our data once it has been given to a merchant. How well do they store your data? Do they restrict who sees it or copies it? Even the credit card companies outsource, so how can it be secure?

Tip! The moment you feel that there has been an identity theft, it is important to report the crime to the police. Provide all the requisite documented evidence.

When one considers the sheer volume of material transmitted every day, the probability of several bytes of your information falling into the wrong hands must be considered extremely small.

If sensible precautions are taken at your end and you only deal with people you trust and use large well-established intermediaries to make your payments so you bring a level of protection between you as customer and the seller, you should be able to feel comfortable in your transactions. But you need to beware of how much information you give strangers - just because they ask you for it!

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Do you give up driving because people are injured or killed daily in car accidents? No you maintain your vehicle, obey the road rules and keep your wits about you!

Michael Russell
Your Independent guide to Identity Theft

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When divorce is part of your life experience, it’s wise to have a good Parenting Plan and to communicate it to the important people in your kid’s lives.I’m going to suggest a list of topics to be considered here and then leave it up to your good intelligence to fill in the blanks and distribute as necessary to those who need this information the most.Use caution when you distribute this information. Make sure the recipient of the file knows that it contains personal and confidential data. Consider providing a copy for your ex, his parents, your parents, your children’s school and your children’s child care provider. Omit information not needed by the one you give it to - You’ll know who needs what. Because of the incidence of Identity Theft, exercise caution. Mark the file as Confidential Information.Child’s NameDate of BirthCurrent ageSexSocial Security NumberAllergiesDoctor’s NameCustody Options/schedule - weekly, vacation, holidayHomework AgreementsPrimary Residence Address, Phone, CellSecondary Residence Address, Phone, CellExhange AgreementsWho has permission to pick up from school?School, medical, and court records sharingCommunicating EmergenciesWhen a parent is movingActivities - scouts, little league, dance classes etc.TransportationDating ConsiderationsExtended/blended family Authorization for medical treatment formCommunication […]

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If you are thinking of moving, either from selling your through the open market or from a cash for property company, there are a few tips that you should know before hand to make moving as simple and stress free as possible.
Make lists
Write down absolutely everything! It0s a good idea to number all you boxes that you pack and then write down on a piece of paper what is in each box, this way you will know exactly where everything is. So when you are in desperate need of a cuppa you will be able to locate the right boxes straight away, rather than the usual moving trick of having to go through every box before you find what you want.
Have plenty of supplies
Make sure you have plenty of boxes. You will need many more boxes than you first think, having enough boxes will make moving just that bit easier. Have some empty boxes left over on moving day for those last minuet items like cleaning supplies, clothes, bedding and linen. You will also need protective wrapping to make sure any household items remain intact when you open the boxes again at your new home. Lastly use strong tape to […]

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Getting a better credits score report, sure; that sounds easy. If you had extra money you wouldn’t have those debts, right?But stop and think about it. If you really want a secure financial future, it’s in your best interest to cut spending and get those debts paid down. Remember, the better your FICO score, the less interest you’ll pay on everything from credit cards, to cars, to a house.It really is worth a bit of sacrifice in the short run to enjoy more financial freedom in the long run.You should also be looking at ways to add a few extra dollars to your income each week - and to add those dollars to the minimum payments you’re probably paying today.Let’s start with spending less. Begin by listing your monthly obligations - can you change your cell phone service to a cheaper plan? How about your cable or satellite TV programming? Can you turn down the heat in the house or remember to turn off lights when they aren’t in use? Those tactics won’t save you much, but every dollar you can put on your outstanding debt is like two dollars by the time you pay interest on it for years.Next […]

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Gone are the days of sub-prime mortgages, stated-income, and zero down loans and loans for folks with no credit scores. Gone also are the creative financing options that allowed sellers to carry back a note for part of your down payment.Maybe they’ll come back as part of the government’s “bail out” program, but it isn’t very likely. Lenders will probably continue to be cautious, and to lend only to those borrowers with high credit scores and money in the bank.So if your credit scores are low, are you doomed to living in a rental for years until you can raise your scores and save a large down payment? No, you’re not. There is another way.You can look for lease to own properties, and seller-financed homes.Remember, homeowners who need to sell are in as much of a bind as borrowers. The pool of buyers who will qualify for loans is getting smaller and smaller as lenders tighten their requirements, so fewer homes are selling.For sellers who have to move, this is a crisis of major proportions.Thus, more and more sellers are entertaining the idea of seller financing and lease to own arrangements. In fact, some entrepreneurs are buying up under priced […]

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You may not know that you are a victim until you are denied a loan, credit card or anything else the requires a credit report. Suddenly you discover someone has opened accounts in your name and of course not paid them. What could you have done?BUY A SHREDDER You can find a small easy to store shredder for less that $20 at almost any office supply store. There is no reason not to have one of these. Any document that includes personal information or your Social Security number should be shredded before you throw it away. Believe it or not there are folks out there that are regular dumpster divers. Shredding your documents makes it impossible for theives to steal your account numbers.KEEP YOUR FINANCIAL DOCUMENTS HIDDEN AND SECURE You would think that most people are perfectly trustworthy but some are not. Is it possible that an appliance repair man, handy man or even a guest in your home could access your personal financial documents? Not if they are under lock and key!PROTECT OUTGOING MAIL Think of everything that goes in your mail. Checks give potential thieves your name, bank account number and routing number. […]

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When you think of your reputation you think of things like honesty, sense of humor, generosity, punctuality, your love life, and the way you treat other people.They’re all personal habits, and so is the way you handle money.The difference is, while all the rest of those attributes are tossed around between your friends and acquaintances, your money management reputation is also made public record for any potential creditor, landlord, employer, or insurer to access.Unlike some other things that might have gone on in your life, you can’t move to a new community and escape your financial reputation. Your credit report and your credit scores tell all - at least for 7 years.The worst of it is - that financial reputation affects things that you might think have nothing to do with your bill-paying or borrowing habits. Things like qualifying for a new job.That’s why it’s worth your effort to protect it, and to keep it accurate.If your credit right now isn’t so hot, it’s time to take steps to rebuild it. I know, 7 years seems like a long time to completely erase blots on your reputation. But if you wait, that 7 years will just keep moving further into […]

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