Identity theft is becoming all too common for millions of Americans. Each year, nearly nine million people are affected by someone trying to take over their identity and credit.

However, there are a variety of steps that can be taken to both prevent identity theft and clean up the mess, should you become a victim.

One of the first steps you can take in preventing identity theft is to maintain a close look at your credit.

Every six months, request copies of your credit reports from the three main credit bureaus. This will give you a close look at what type of credit you currently have open as well as who has pulled your credit.

Mail

Mail is a great way for someone to steal your identity. Therefore, it is important to keep a close eye on your mail. If you are going to be out of town for any period of time, you can request that the post office hold your mail until you return. Never leave your mail in the mailbox over night. As well, if you have requested a credit card through the mail and it does not arrive in a timely manner, be sure to contact the company immediately.

Whenever you are mailing documents with personal information on them, take them directly to the post office. This will prevent a thief from being able to steal the documents from your mail box.

Shred!

Make sure that you own a shredder. Anytime you receive an unwanted credit card application or have any other documents with personal information on it that you no longer want, make sure that you put it through the shredder. When looking to purchase a shredder, make sure you get one that cross shreds and will also cut through your credit cards.

Identity Theft Victim

If you believe you have been a victim of identity theft, there are a variety of different steps you will need to take. You will want to begin by contacting the Federal Trade Commission and filing a complaint. They will be an excellent resource to help you get your life back together. It is also important that you put fraud alerts on all of your accounts. This can be done by contacting the three main credit bureaus. You will also need to let all of your creditors and banks know that you have been a victim of identity theft.

One of the biggest mistakes you can make is having a mindset that you cannot become a victim of identity theft. It is this type of mindset that allows your guard to come down.

Therefore, it is important that you take as many precautions as possible to avoid becoming a victim. By taking some extra steps, you can easily reduce your chances of becoming an identity theft victim.

Recovering from identity theft is one question lurking in the back of many consumers minds as the growing awareness and threat becomes more common place. The true is not recovery but prevention whether you have been a victim or not. Doing everything possible to keep yourself from being another statistic should be your primarily concern.

This is not to say you should curl up on the couch and never venture out into the world. True – these personality thefts seldom get caught or face the penalty of the damage inflicted.

Most of ID theft begins its journey online, where personal data is easily snatched while be passed from one site to another, or complete personal computer systems can find themselves compromised by a hacker installing a rogue program. They come with different labels – Trojan horses and key-loggers to name a few.

Every computer needs not only a security program but one that is automatically updated! Any time your personal information is exposed for others to see put you and your identity at risk.

Recovering from the trauma of identity theft will take a lot of time and effort. It’s also a very real issue putting you at risk, no matter how protected and safe you think you are.

More on Identity Theft Prevention here…

Would you hand your credit card off to a complete stranger and let them walk off – as long as they gave you a polite “I’ll be right back!” Probably not – Or would you? If you’ve ever pulled out your credit card to pay for a meal at a restaurant, that statement just described you.

Stop for a moment and think about it. Once the waiter steps away from the table do you really know what will happen to your credit credit card once it disappears from sight and the table?

Well it could happen to you!

Waiters from around the country representing approximately 40 restaurants took information from patrons then recorded their credit card data then took the information to spend and make purchases total about $3 million.

Identity theft is growing each and every day. When your information involving privacy and security come into play, don’t let your guard down of give anyone the benefit of the doubt. If you must make a purchase with a credit or debt card and it must leave your sight – use cash!

Check and monitor you monthly statement when it arrives or go online to watch it and report immediately any suspicious activity to your creditor. Don’t be a victim of identity theft.

Credit reporting bureaus are allowing consumers to fight back in the war on identity theft by letting them “freeze” their credit histories.

According to ID Watchdog a service which monitors identity theft,    “freezing” credit history is a good first step but not an end all solution. The victims of ID theft has risen from about 100,000 in the year 2000, to over 10 million in 2006.

New companies like ID watchdog and LifeLock specialize in identity theft monitoring and prevention.
 
When you freeze the data on your credit report the information becomes “locked” until you authorize the data to be released. As in everything there is a fee to lock and unlock your credit information.

As a consumer you need to be aware that if a thief wants to steal your identity they can do it! Protecting your credit report may in fact be a worthless exercise. The fact is, over 70 percent of identity theft crimes will have nothing to do with your credit report.

A theft could open a Post Office Box, get a pre-paid cell phone, commit a crime or use your name. All which does has nothing to do with credit. 

The FTC – United States Federal Trade Commission claims identity theft as the fastest growing crime in the country. Most victims do not find out about their information being compromised until approximately 12 monhs after a thief makes their first transaction.

It’s estimated in 2005, the cost to businesses and consumers was approximately $56 billion dollars. The sad part is that few than 1 in 700 identity theft crimes ever lead to a conviction.

With no foolproof method or way to guarantee you will not fall victim to ID theft you need to keep on the look out for potential signs that someone may be using your identity.

• Credit cards begin you show up – Cards you never applied for!
• Missing Bills or mail – If bills don’t show up when expected or other item in the mail contact the sender. Identity thieves could change the mailing address and taken over your account.
• Debt collectors begin to call you for items you never purchased
• When you look to finance you find your credit is denied or the credit terms are not as good as they once were. Credit limits may be lower or inter rates could be higher

How important is it for you to keep your eyes open for identity thieft? The estimates or statistics show that the average time needed to repair the problems associated with victims of identty theft to be in the 400-600 hour range.

Ask yourself now… have any of the above items happened to you? Has your identity been stolden?

I was reading a post over at SecurityManor.com on Identiy theft  and they shared an aspect on losing your identity I had not thought off and wanted to point it out. Recently, I had my credit card number lifted with "some identy theft purchases" made. Fortunately,  the charges were caught and the outcome was the  getting a new credit card, number and all. 

Think you’re that someone stealing your identity is not possible. Look at how easy it could be. Read the article at SecurityManor and ask yourself if it has ever happened to you.

As more people move to making their purchases online consumers let their guard down and can make themselves more open to identity theft .

Computer users would be surprised to know how much information open for grabs on their PC’s. Information such as passwords, credit card numbers, back account numbers and other financial information.

When getting and setting up a new computer take the opportunity to through the information on your old PC before copying the data over.

Take advantage of the new electronic tools to "shred" your digital files before disposing of the PC through giving away, donating or recycling.

Before making any online purchase for yourself or as gifts make should the site has a solid privacy policy and look for a seal of approval from organizations like the Better Business Bureau.

Virtual credit cards that expire or are only good for one purchase are great to use on websites you are not familiar with. If you run Windows as your operating system make sure you have the latest security patches before making purchases.

Tips To Avoid Identity Theft While Shopping Online

• If you are called by the "Credit Card" company to check for possible fraudulent charges, never give information over the phone. Instead take the extra measure to call the company back using their 1-800 number to verify who you are speaking with.
• Check your advanced setting before downloading any music. Make sure access to all areas which could contain personal information has been disabled.
• Never use bank account passwords for any purchases or site registrations.
• If you are using a friends computer to purchase online items make sure your email passwords are not saved on their PC.

Don’t think you are immune to Identity theft. According to a Gartner report, Identity theft happens in the US every two seconds. So far in 2007, about 8.4 million people have had to deal with the issue. A product such as LifeLock is the only Identity Theft Prevention Solution backed by a one-million dollar guarantee!

If you’ve ever dealt with identity theft or suspect someone has got a hold of your personal information the first thing you should do is take action and do it quickly. This goes way beyond calling only your credit card company. Contact agencies and institutions as well and take the following steps:Here’s a good list of steps you should follow from the Business Examiner Enterprise