Identity Theft

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What You Should Know

For criminals, identity theft is a relatively low-risk, high-reward endeavor. Thieves are difficult to apprehend — and even when caught, are seldom prosecuted.

For victims, it can take months or years and thousands of dollars to clear their good name and credit record. In the meantime, they may be refused loans, lose job opportunities and even be arrested for crimes they did not commit.

That is why it is important to understand what identity theft is, how it happens and how to protect yourself. If you become a victim, your best defense is to recognize it quickly and take immediate action to mitigate its effects. To do so, you must know how to detect identity theft and how to respond if your information is stolen. Do not hesitate to seek appropriate professional advice if legal issues should arise regarding your specific situation.

What Is Identity Theft?

Identity thieves work in many ways. They may:

• Open fraudulent bank or credit card accounts in your name, then write bad checks or incur charges.
• Change your billing address, incur charges on your existing credit card accounts and order new credit cards. Because you never receive the bills, you are unlikely to recognize the problem for some time.
• Use your good credit to secure loans.
• Establish wireless phone service in your name.
• Purchase vehicles by securing vehicle loans in your name.
• Use your name and background information to obtain employment.
• Use your name during an arrest for crimes ranging from traffic violations to felonies. If they are released from custody and fail to appear for their court date, an arrest warrant may be issued in your name.

Identity thieves are hard to recognize because they do not necessarily fit a specific profile. An offender could be a complete stranger, a criminally minded cashier or service provider, a neighbor or even a family member.

How Does It Occur?

• Taking your wallet.
• Going through trash bins for unshredded credit card and loan applications, discarded credit cards and papers containing personal information such as SSNs, dates of birth or phone numbers.
• Stealing newly issued credit cards, utility bills, insurance statements, benefits documents or other information from unsecured mailboxes.
• Completing a change of address form to divert your mail to another location.
• Posing as a loan officer, employer or landlord to obtain your credit report.
• Placing malware (malicious software) on your computer that can steal your user IDs, passwords, etc.
• Hacking into computer databases and stealing your personal information.
• Conducting phone or e-mail scams requesting that you provide personal information to claim a prize or update an account.
• Stealing files from your employer, merchants, physician’s office or other businesses that maintain your personal records.
• Shoulder surfing at automated teller machines (ATM) to capture Personal Identification Numbers (PIN).
• Pretexting is a practice of obtaining information under false pretenses. For example, the identity thieves claim to be calling from a marketing research firm requesting personal information. The information is used to contact your bank or financial institution.
• Skimming steals credit or debit card numbers by using a special storage device when processing your card. This usually occurs in restaurants.
• Phishing occurs when identity thieves send e-mail messages pretending to be financial institutions or other legitimate businesses. The e-mails appear to be authentic and usually request victims to reveal personal information to avoid an account closure or suspension.

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