| heft of personal information for criminal purposes, also | | | | recover from an identity theft attack. It may even take |
| known as identity theft, has grown exponentially in the | | | | longer to recover than it took to commit the crimes |
| last couple of years. This may be due to the fact that | | | | themselves. This is the worst part of becoming a |
| the gains from stealing personal information have also | | | | victim of identity theft. |
| increased. With the correct identifying information | | | | Because of this the best course of action is take a |
| criminals can gain a hefty sum of money from the | | | | vigilant stance and commit to preventive measures |
| fraud and deception used in identity theft. | | | | against identity theft. The United States Department of |
| Credit identity theft is the most common class of | | | | Justice recommends a "SCAM" approach to identity |
| identity theft today. This involves criminals using a | | | | theft. "S for Stingy" means that one should be reluctant |
| victim's credit card information to make cash | | | | in giving away their personal information when it is |
| advances and purchases. The theft can occur at | | | | clearly unnecessary. For example, one can omit details |
| home, at the office, or even during innocent outings | | | | such as their social security numbers on checks and |
| such as dinners or vacations. These criminals use | | | | other document if they are not truly needed there. |
| different methods to get to a victim's credit card | | | | Also being wary of "special offers" from unknown |
| information and use them for their criminal intentions. | | | | callers or email senders and other sources that ask for |
| Identity theft can come in many forms. Some criminals | | | | your credit card information can protect you from |
| eavesdrop or look over the shoulder of their victims to | | | | credit identity theft. |
| take their personal information while they are dictating | | | | "C is for Check" is a step towards regular identity theft |
| them or writing them down. Some steal mail or redirect | | | | checks through careful analysis of credit reports and |
| mail in order to get to the information sent to the victim | | | | billing statements. |
| by their banks, utilities or other services. Some even go | | | | "A is for Ask" to ask for reports and records from |
| through the trash of their targets to get to discarded | | | | government institutions and financial services |
| documents. | | | | whenever possible to see previous access dates and |
| The internet is also a new hunting ground for these | | | | service requests. |
| thieves. They commit identity theft through malicious | | | | "M is for Maintain" as maintaining your own records of |
| unsolicited electronic mail known as "spam", they | | | | banking and financial activities will help you ensure that |
| create fake websites that look like legitimate in a | | | | you are in control of everything and nothing is being |
| technique called "phishing", and they create viruses, | | | | stolen. |
| worms, and malware that harvest personal information | | | | By taking a proactive stance against identity fraud you |
| automatically from infected computers. | | | | can protect your privacy and your financial security |
| The worst news is that even when the crime has | | | | from criminals who are actively seeking to steal them |
| been discovered it can take a lot of time and effort to | | | | from you. |