Identity Theft

    It can happen to anyone. The phone rings and a collection agency demands that you pay past-due accounts for goods you never ordered. The supermarket refuses your checks because you have a history of bouncing them. But you have always paid bills on time. What has happened?

    The crime of identity theft is on the rise. Recent surveys show there are currently 7-10 million victims per year, greatly exceeding earlier estimates.  Using a variety of methods, criminals steal Social Security numbers (SSN), driver's license numbers, credit card numbers, ATM cards, telephone calling cards, and other pieces of individuals' identities such as date of birth. They use this information to impersonate their victims, spending as much money as they can in as short a time as possible before moving on to someone else's name and identifying information.

    Identity theft occurs when someone, you know or may not know, uses your personal information to commit fraud or other crimes. Depending on the complexity of the crime the thief may only need your name, but they may also use your Social Security number, credit card number, bank account number or other identifying information to perpetuate their crime. The economic devastation on an individual can be staggering; costing them thousands of dollars and taking years to correct. The impact to corporations has resulted in higher costs that are consequently passed on to the consumer.

Stealing wallets used to be the best way identity thieves obtained social security numbers, driver’s licenses, credit card numbers and other pieces of identification. While still employed, identity thieves now use more sophisticated means:

• "Dumpster diving" in trash bins for un-shredded credit card and loan applications and documents containing SSNs.
• Stealing mail from unlocked mailboxes to obtain newly issued credit cards, bank and credit card statements, pre-approved credit offers, investment reports, insurance statements, benefits documents, or tax information. Unfortunately, even locked mailboxes may not stop the most determined thief.
• Accessing your credit report fraudulently, for example, by posing as an employer, loan officer, or landlord.
• Obtaining names and SSNs from personnel or customer files in the workplace.
• "Shoulder surfing" at ATM machines and phone booths in order to capture PIN numbers.
• Finding identifying information on Internet sources, via public records sites and fee-based information broker sites.

Take These Steps to Reduce Your Risk of Becoming a Victim of Identity Theft

You cannot prevent identity theft. Criminals can commit identity theft relatively easily because of lax credit industry practices and the ease of obtaining SSNs. But you can reduce your risk of fraud by following the tips in this guide. The most important advice we can give you is to check your credit report at least once a year. If you are a victim of identity theft, you will catch it early by checking your credit report regularly.

Reducing Access to Your Personal Data

1. Do not carry extra credit cards, or personally identifiable information in your wallet or purse

2. To reduce the amount of personal information that is "out there," consider the following:

• Remove your name from the marketing lists of the three credit reporting bureaus -- Equifax, Experian (formerly TRW) and Trans Union. Call 888-5OPTOUT. This will limit the number of pre-approved offers of credit that you receive. These, when tossed into the garbage, are a potential target of identity thieves who use them to order credit cards in your name.
• Sign up for the Federal Trade Commission's National Do Not Call Registry and the Direct Marketing Association's Telephone Preference Service. Your name is added to name deletion lists used by nationwide marketers. You may also need to register for your state’s "do not call" list, if it has one.
  
  • National Do Not Call Registry, www.donotcall.gov, (888) 382-1222
  • Telephone Preference Service, PO Box 1559, Carmel, NY 10512
  • Do Not Call Registry interaction with state registries: www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/edcams/donotcall/statelist.html
    
• Have your name and address removed from the phone book and reverse directories.
• Opt-out of the sale or sharing of your financial information when given the opportunity by your bank, credit card companies, insurance companies, and investment firms.

3. Install a locked mailbox at your residence to deter mail theft. Or use a post office box or a commercial mailbox service. When you are away from home for an extended time, have your mail held at the Post Office, or ask a trusted neighbor to pick it up.

4. When ordering new checks, pick them up at the bank. Don’t have them mailed to your home. If you have a post office box, use that address on your checks rather than your home address so thieves will not know where you live.

5. When you pay bills, do not leave the envelopes containing your checks at your mailbox for the postal carrier to pick up, or in open boxes at the receptionist’s desk in your workplace. If stolen, your checks can be altered and then cashed by the imposter. It is best to mail bills and other sensitive items at the drop boxes inside the post office rather than neighborhood drop boxes.

Return to Top

Credit Cards and Credit Reports

6. Reduce the number of credit cards you actively use to a minimum. Carry only one or two of them in your wallet. Consider canceling unused accounts. Even though you do not use them, their account numbers are recorded in your credit report, providing a tempting target for identity thieves. But be aware that reducing the number of credit card accounts might lower your credit score. Part of your score is determined by having credit cards and installment loans and making timely payments. (For more information on credit scoring, visit www.myfico.com.)

7. Keep a list or photocopy of all your credit cards, bank accounts, and investments -- the account numbers, expiration dates and telephone numbers of the customer service and fraud departments -- in a secure place (not your wallet or purse) so you can quickly contact these companies in case your credit cards have been stolen or accounts are being used fraudulently.

8. Never give out your SSN, credit card number or other personal information over the phone, by mail, or on the Internet unless you have a trusted business relationship with the company and you have initiated the call. Identity thieves have been known to call their victims with a fake story in order to obtain personal information.

9. Always take credit card receipts with you. Never toss them in a public trash container. When shopping, put receipts in your wallet rather than in the shopping bag.

Passwords and PINS

10. When creating passwords and PINs (personal identification numbers), do not use the last four digits of your Social Security number, mother’s maiden name, your birth date, middle name, pet's name, consecutive numbers or anything else that could easily be discovered by thieves. It’s best to create passwords that combine letters and numbers.

11. Memorize all your passwords. Don't record them on anything in your wallet.

Social Security Numbers

12. Protect your Social Security number (SSN). Release it only when absolutely necessary (like tax forms, employment records, most banking, stock and property transactions). The SSN is the key to your credit and banking accounts and is the prime target of criminals.

13. Do not have your SSN or driver’s license number printed on your checks. Don't let merchants hand-write the SSN onto your checks because of the risk of fraud. There is no law against this, so you may need to be assertive.

14. Examine your Social Security Personal Earnings and Benefits Estimate Statement each year to check for fraud. The Social Security Administration mails it to adult-age SSN holders about three months before the birthday. The SSA web site has additional information, www.ssa.gov/mystatement. Reach them by phone at (800) 772-1213.

15. If you live in a state that uses the SSN as the driver’s license number, we recommend that you contact your Department of Motor Vehicles and request a different number.

Internet and Computer Safeguards

16. Install a firewall on your home computer to prevent hackers from obtaining personal identifying and financial data from your hard drive. This is especially important if you connect to the Internet by DSL or cable modem.

17. Install and update virus protection software to prevent a worm or virus from causing your computer to send out files or other stored information.

18. Password-protect files that contain sensitive personal data, such as financial account information. Create passwords that combine 6-8 numbers and letters, upper and lower case.

19. When shopping online, do business with companies that provide transaction security protection, and that have strong privacy and security policies.

20. Before disposing of your computer, remove data by using a strong "wipe" utility program. Do not rely on the "delete" function to remove files containing sensitive information.

Responsible Information Handling

21. Each month, carefully review your credit card, bank and phone statements, including cellular phone bills, for unauthorized use.

22. Do not toss pre-approved credit offers in your trash or recycling bin without first tearing them into small pieces or shredding them.

23. Demand that financial institutions adequately safeguard your data.

24. When you fill out loan or credit applications, find out how the company disposes of them.

25. Store canceled checks in a safe place.

26. Store personal information securely in your home or in a safe deposit box.

    Take precautions; do not give out personal information to anyone unless you are confident that they are who they represent themselves to be. When ordering products from the internet read the security and privacy policy and look for valid VeriSign, Better Business OnLine Reliability Program logo. There are other organizations that provide security and privacy verification, so check out that organizations website and verify their program.

If Theft Occurs

• File a crime report immediately

• Contact all credit card numbers

• Contact the bank

• Contact Social Security Administration's Fraud Line at 1-800-269-0271

• Close the accounts that victims know or believed have been tampered with or opened fraudulently

• Call the toll free number of any one of the three major credit bureaus to place a fraud alert on your credit report

    Fraud alerts can help prevent an identity theft from opening additional accounts in victim's names. As soon as the credit bureau confirms the fraud alert, the other two bureaus will automatically be notified to place fraud alerts, and all three credit reports will be sent to the victim free of charge.

Additional Information

Federal Trade Commission Identity Theft Clearinghouse

• Phone: (877) IDTHEFT (877-438-4338)
• Web: www.consumer.gov/idtheft
• FTC’s free 34-page identity theft guide, "When Bad Things Happen to Your Good Name," available by phone and www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/credit/idtheft.htm

• Arkansas Identity Theft Passport, http://www.ag.state.ar.us/itp/passport.htm
• Arkansas Attorney General, http://www.ag.state.ar.us/
• U.S. Dept. Of Justice, identity theft info, www.usdoj.gov/criminal/fraud/idtheft.html
• U.S. Dept. of Justice Operation Cybersweep, http://www.fbi.gov/cyber/cysweep/cysweep1.htm
• Fight Identity Theft, www.fightidentitytheft.com

Return to Top