Well let me tell you that's it's not very hard at all!
All that an identity thief needs to steal your identity is one small piece of personal information about you. A thief can still your identity just by getting a hold of your name, birth date, email, address, etc. Many people worry about buying stuff online using their credit cards and personal information but they don't realize that they should be taking other precautions too that are not as obvious. We all need to be very careful about where and to who we share personal information about us.
Lisa Rogak on her article talks about 10 things you should know about Identity Theft. Some of the reasons she mentions are the following:
The first thing she mentions is that thieves don't need your credit card number to still your identity. We need to keep our social security cards, passports, licence and other personal document in a secure place. She then talks about how the non financial personal information we reveal online is enough for a thief. We need to be careful about posting birth dates on social networks or telephone numbers and other personal information, on websites even if its for businesses purpose. She continues to say that we need to review every bank statement at least once a month. One of the last things she mentions that I think is super important is to go paperless. When you receive bank statements, bills, and letters in the mail they usually include a lot of your personal information in it. For example they include your address, name, sometimes phone numbers, and account numbers.
Little changes in our actions like the ones Lisa Rogak mentions in her essays can really help protect our identities from thieves! You really never know when someone may be out to get you so its better to be safe than sorry!
Little changes in our actions like the ones Lisa Rogak mentions in her essays can really help protect our identities from thieves! You really never know when someone may be out to get you so its better to be safe than sorry!
this is an interesting topic!! My mother had her identity stolen when i was in elementary school and it was a really big stress. There was sooooo much paperwork to take care of and then everything was a hassle to fix especially after she had to reset all of her accounts and get new cards. I'm extremely careful with what I put on the internet as well as things i throw out. Even little things like cards that we get from family for holidays and birthdays can be a gateway for a thief if you don't shred the envelope.
ReplyDeleteThis is really scary to think about! I always figured if people didn't know my credit card number or social security number then I was in the clear. Yikes!
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