10 Ways to Protect Yourself From Identity Theft

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Identity theft is a common problem. Especially with today’s high technology, there are many ways thieves can steal your identity and your money. Following these steps will help protect you from being a victim of identity theft.

1. Shred all documents, bills, receipts, mail, ATM receipts and credit card offers. Shred these documents both vertically and horizontally. Don’t make it easy for anyone rummaging through your garbage or recycle bin to put the pieces together to gather your personal information.

2. Limit financial transactions over the internet. If you must bank and shop online, choose a password that includes both numbers and letters, caps and lower case. Change your passwords often and don’t use the same password for all accounts. If you must write them down, be sure to keep them in a safe place. Always log out of your online accounts.

Be aware of phishing emails. Companies and banks will not contact you via email. If on the odd occasion they do, they will address you by your name, not “Dear customer”. And you haven’t won a lottery in which you never entered.

If you are getting a new computer, remove your hard drive before you send the old one out to pasture. Nothing is ever completely erased. If you want to dispose of your hard drive, smash it with a hammer.

3. When paying with a credit card, make sure your card is visible to you at all times. It’s easy to give the waiter or waitress a credit card to pay for your meal and have them return to your table with your bill to sign, but safer to go to the register with the employee.

When using an ATM bank machine, cover the keypad with your hand when entering your PIN number even if there is no one around. There are cameras everywhere.

Image by Don Hankins via Flickr

4. Don’t carry your social insurance card with you. Memorize the number and lock it in a safe. We have a small fire-safe for documents such as wills, birth certificates, social insurance cards, and passports.