How to Combat Identity Theft

- Aristotle

In a day and age where your identity is used to judge you more than ever, your personal information has never been at greater risk and identity theft is now one of the fastest growing crimes in America, and the world.

You may be a victim of identity theft if you fail to receive your monthly bills, or your other mail for that matter. This would signal that someone has changed your address to gather personal information about you. Other victims have said that they discovered the identity theft problem when they would be denied credit for no apparent reason and even have received calls from debt collectors.

It is a common practice for someone to ask for your social security number for a variety of reasons, but should only be revealed for tax and income purposes. It was never meant to be used as a source of identification. Guard it carefully because it is a costly endeavor, both in time and money to defend yourself once your identity has been stolen.

In May of 2006, President Bush enacted the Identity Theft Task Force to address the problem of identity theft which has been called the fastest growing white collar crime. Victims of identity theft can sometimes go for several months before they know anything is even amiss.

An identity thief seeks personal information such as your social security number, mothers maiden name, bank account information and credit card numbers. They use the information collected to deplete a victims bank account, run up thousands of dollars in charges on a fradulent or stolen credit card or even obtain a home loan. It could take victims several thousands of dollars and years to restore their reputations and credit standing.

According to CBS News, a persons identity is stolen every 79 seconds in America and the Federal Trade Commission reports that each year more than 85,000 people report being victims of identity theft. You hear on the daily news all the time of database's being either stolen or misplaced, jeopardizing the personal information of thousands of unwary consumers.

Most recently in Ohio, 225,000 taxpayers have had their social security numbers compromised and the state is offering a free online service where consumers can check to see if their numbers were on a stolen computer disk.

With companies and government agencies not providing adequate security measures for consumers personal information, identity theft is a rampant and escalating problem, leaving the consumer holding the bag.

There are precautions you can take to minimize the risk of having your identity stolen. Never give out your personal information online to an unsolicited email requesting it. Banks, lenders, insurance companies or financial institutions will never ask you for your personal information. When in doubt, call and verify the request and get the name of the person you are speaking with.

Order copies of your credit report from all three credit bureaus. Check for any accounts that do not belong to you and if one is found, immediately file a report with your local police department and contact all of your creditors fraud department and alert them as to any unauthorized and suspicious activity.