Thankfully, I have never been a victim of ID theft but have had friends go through this nightmare. This is something that all of us can be victim to whether we do everything right or not simply because companies can make us vunerable as well.
I wanted to post a few things that we can all do to protect our identity.
Review your Credit Report. I have said this before but this step is crucial. We need to be on our credit reports three times a year to make sure it is accurate and also to catch anything fishy that may indicate identity theft.
Read your monthly credit card statements. Many people just check the balance and send off a payment. Read your charges and fees....I have caught and disputed charges many times.
Be very careful with Online Shopping. I feel almost hypocritical saying this as I online shop all the time. But I only enter credit card information on secure sites. You can verify this but looking at the website URL to ensure it starts with "https://" and there is a padlock symbol on the page. Also, keep your virus scan up to date!
Stay Skeptical of Solicitations. I tend to be a skeptical person when people are selling anything but more so when people contact me. Do not give anyone your information if they call you. The only time you should give any of this info is if you contact your lender.
Safeguard Your Trash. Shred your receipts. Remove your name and address mailing sticker from your magazines before throwing away. Shred anything you aren't sure should be thrown away. People do dig through trash and recycle cans.
Identity theft can take years to clean up and still cause tremendous damage to your credit history. Save yourself the trouble and be proactive on a daily basis. In 2020, 32% (roughly 258,000) of consumer complaints filed with the Federal Trade Commission involved identity theft.
