Identity theft. Unless you’ve been in a cave in the outback of Australia you have likely heard plenty about identity theft. Well, here it comes again but hopefully in an easy to digest form.

The Wikipedia (http://www.wikipedia..org/) defines identity theft as the use of someone’s means of identification, including credit cards. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) estimates that 10 million people are the victims of identity theft each year. Identity theft is a real problem.

Prevention
Identity theft can happen many ways, some of which have nothing to do with technology or the Internet. Credit card numbers are copied by dishonest waitpersons at restaurants and social security numbers (SSN) and birthdates are collected by impostors claiming to have a prize for you. Thieves will even go through your trash looking for personal information.

Your SSN is most important. You should never give anyone your SSN unless you are absolutely sure that they have a legitimate need for it. Many institutions collect SSNs gratuitously, without good reason. And you don’t know if that institution will adequately protect your SSN. Treat your SSN as confidential information and do not carry your social security card in your wallet or purse. It is extremely difficult to get another SSN should yours be compromised. Your date of birth should also be protected in a similar fashion.

Don’t get hooked by a phisher. Phishing is a form of social engineering that attempts to fool you into divulging confidential information. One common form of phishing is the generally pitiful e-mail about a dead or dying person who has lots of money and wants to give you some of it. We all know that such things happen all the time. Not! Another prevalent form of phishing is the fake e-mail from a financial institution asking you to update your records, verify your account or comply with some new government regulation. While some of these forgeries can be difficult to detect, most are obvious. A dead giveaway is a request from a financial institution with which you have not connection. These messages often include awkward or grammatically incorrect phrasing.

Other things to avoid include opening e-mail attachments that you were not expecting, clicking on embedded links in messages from strangers and ignoring the rule that if it sounds too good to be true, it most certainly is.

If You Are a Victim
If you are a victim of identity theft you may be notified by the organization that didn’t take good care of your information. You might also see charges on your credit card that are not yours. In any case, don’t panic. In most cases you will not be held responsible for fraudulent charges.

There are four steps you should take if your identity has been hijacked.

1. Place a fraud alert on your credit reports and review your credit reports.
2. Close the accounts that you know, or believe, have been tampered with or opened fraudulently.
3. File a report with your local police or the police in the community where the identity theft occurred.
4. File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission.

Undoing the effects of identity theft can be expensive and time consuming. As is the case with many threats, prevention is the best approach.

Useful Web Sites

• Federal Trade Commission http://www.ftc.gov/
• FAQ: Identity Theft Uncovered http://tinyurl.com/d5yy5
• Online banking too risky? http://tinyurl.com/c7xw6
• Identity Theft (general information) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Identity_theft