Do you know how to keep your identity against theft? Did you know that there are steps you can take every day to keep your identity? Although identity theft are not preventable, there are a few routes you can take to protect yourself and possibly reduce your chances of becoming a victim of this life changing crime.
5 "musts" to protect your identity
Unfortunately, as technology becomes more a part of our daily life, it becomes increasingly difficult for us to keep our personal information private. It is not a question of "do not give strangers your social security number" because most identity thieves learn more invasive techniques to access our information, along with our obsession with technology against us . Fortunately, there are steps you can take every day to try to protect your identity.
1. Shred all documents containing personal information. One of the ways that identity thieves access to personal information is sorting through the bins and the collection of any document that includes something from your address and date of birth to even your social security number
One way easy to make an identity thief will not collect any of your personal information that you accidentally throw is to destroy any documents or mail that contains personal information. These documents usually include bank statements, credit card pre-approval offer and any letter from the office or the health of your medical insurance.
The best way to destroy these documents is to shred them using a cross-cut shredder, but another option is to burn it or take it to a company that shreds for you, as a shredding center. If you decide to pay a company to shred for you, then you must ensure that the company destroyed all the documents in your presence. Do not leave documents unattended with anyone, even an employee.
2. Monitor account activity regularly: This concerns not only checking accounts and savings accounts, but all accounts you have opened in your name, such as credit card. It is easier to just tear the statement when it arrives each month, but it is better that you go through each transaction before destroying it. Make sure that you were the only one to complete each transaction, and report any unknown transaction to your bank as soon as you spot them. A representative of your bank will be able to guide you through the process of fraud reports.
3. Limit information shared on social media: It's fun to share information on social media, but it is also important to remember that you may be unwittingly providing foreign with your personal information. That is why it is essential for you to define not only the strictest privacy settings, but also check the settings regularly. To ensure the security of your information, do not post anything publicly because it means that everyone on this social media site can see it. Instead, change your settings so that your "friends" or "followers" can see what you post.
4. Only enter information on secure websites: Whenever you enter personal information - such as your address and e-mail address - or connect to an account, you must ensure that the site is secure. The best way to say that the site is secure is by making sure the URL begins with "https", meaning https. If a URL starts with "https" it means that you are sure to get all the necessary information. Read more tips on how to tell if a site is secure. In addition to not access information through secure Web sites, you should also only use strong passwords. Learn more about passwords and how to create a password.
5. Check your credit reports: It is no secret that a common practice is identity thieves to open new lines of credit fraud name of the victim, which is why it is essential that you check your credit reports as often as possible. The federal government allows you to check all three - Equifax, Experian, TransUnion -. Of your credit reports annually for free by AnnualCreditReport.com however often check your credit reports once a year is not often enough to catch potential fraud
To help you catch fraud before it makes havoc on your reports and credit scores, it is best if you regularly monitor your credit reports regularly. You can do this by signing up for a credit report monitoring service, or even take backup of your identity more by subscribing to a service protection against identity theft. These services not only monitor the daily activity of your credit reports and alerts you if there is any update or change, but also to take additional steps to protect your identity against theft by making your information personal are not sold and traded on the black market on the Internet or used fraudulently on public folders.
Most of the top-rated identity theft protection services offer some kind of free trial that allow you to test the service before making any financial commitment, and cost less than $ 20 per month so that you need not break the bank to protect you. Read our identity notice of protection against theft to see what the service that best suits your budget and needs.