About 4.8 million identity theft and credit card fraud reports were received by the Federal Trade Commission in 2020. These incidents translated to losses worth some $4.5 billion.
But what is identity theft anyway? It happens when a person uses another individual’s personal information — such as credit card information or social security number information — to commit fraud.
Do you want to know how to protect yourself from becoming a victim?
Keep reading to learn about identity theft protection and how to stay safe.
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1.Shred Documents Containing Personal Info
Never toss documents containing important personal information in a trash can. If you do so, criminals with criminal intent can easily retrieve and misuse the information. Shred documents to destroy the information they contain.
Whether your credit card statements, bank statements, or anything else along these lines, shredding is a must. When you shred such documents, you can avoid becoming an identity theft victim.
It doesn’t cost much to get hold of a shredder, and buying one can end up sparing you a whole lot of stress and saving you a whole lot of money.
2.Be Mindful of Your Email Habits
You also should be careful when it comes to using email. For instance, you need to steer clear of phishing attempts. This happens when scammers send legitimate-looking emails hoping to get recipients to disclose personal info.
Specifically, a scammer might produce emails that look like they’re from your bank. Such emails are intended to get you to disclose your password or account number so that the scammer can use it for his own financial gain.
If you believe that you’ve encountered fraudulent communication, you need to know how to report identity theft. Contact the institution in question and let one of the representatives know that you’ve received a fraudulent email. You can also check the legitimacy of an email by running it with an email header analyzer.
It’s also critical to adopt good password habits. Don’t select easy-to-guess passwords for your email or bank accounts. So, don’t use your pet’s name, your birth year, or anything else that’s easy to guess as a password.
Your passwords should be hard to guess. Choose passwords that include a combination of uppercase and lower case letters, numbers, and symbols.
3.Use the Right Tools
Use some of the best identity theft protection tools on the market. You should consider professional bug sweeping services, for example.
Spying devices are hard to spot, which means you need the right tools to know if you’re being spied on. Bug sweeping services involve scanning your property to detect any spying devices. You can nip ID theft attempts in the bud.
Identity Theft Protection Is Your Business
When you know the identity theft definition, you can take precautions to protect your confidential information.
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Knowing how to protect yourself will help to ensure that you don’t become a victim. The three recommendations above are a good place to start.
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