Identity theft is a growing problem in our society and knowing how to combat identity theft is essential to your financial well-being.
“Identity theft is one of the fastest-growing crimes in the nation especially in the suburbs.” Melissa Bean
Why is knowing how to combat identity theft so extremely important
According to www.identitytheft.info approximately 15 million United States residents have their identities used fraudulently each year with financial losses totaling upwards of 50 billion dollars. With numbers like that, it’s not a matter of if your identity will be stolen but rather when identity theft impacts your life.
Protecting your identity has become just as important as your budget or spending habits, when it pertains to
…show more content…
For example, someone pretends to a representative from your bank or Credit Card Company and they ask to verify your personal information which enables them to steal your identity. Most of the time, they will ask for your social security number and account information. There are steps you can take to protect yourself from these types of scams. First, be wary of emails with urgent request for personal or financial information. Never give out such information unless you are absolutely certain of the source and it’s secure. Always look for, if dealing with a website, a padlock in the corner of the web browser. Next, never click on any links in email message that you receive. There is always the possibility that they contain spyware. Avoiding phishing scams is critical in identity theft …show more content…
Your kid’s birthdates or pet’s names make horrible passwords and should never be used. Yes, they are easy to remember but terrible for identity theft prevention.
7 ways to keep your computer data secure
1. Never leave your laptop out in the open. Whether you’re at home, work or a coffee shop, never leave your computer unattended.
2. Always keep your computer off when not using it. Leaving it on with your personal files exposed is asking for trouble.
3. Getting back to the password protection. The use of obvious usernames and passwords should always be avoided. Always incorporate at least one number, a capital letter and a special character when choosing a password. Your computer security settings should always be set on locked so the username and password must be entered to unlock your computer.
4. Most of us, myself included, keep our passwords written down. Do not keep your password list and computer in the same place. Always keep them separate.
5. Always install a firewall on your computer or laptop.
6. You should install antivirus programs on your computer to prevent spyware and key loggers off your computer.
7. You should always delete all personal info from your old computer when a new one is
* If passwords are written down, they must be kept in a safe place, e.g. a wallet, or a safe. Passwords are not be be written down and tape to the bottom of the keyboard, stuck to the computer monitor with a sticky note, or put in an unlocked desk drawer.
That anyone who could gain unauthorized access to your computer will then have all your passwords at their disposal.
A website places a cookie on your computer to remember certain data so it may run smoother when you return to the site, some government’s collect data to collect data for national security, Google can also collect data to send to marketing companies.
Identity theft is a significant problem to both citizens and financial institutions. The FTC estimates that over 27.3 million Americans have been the victims of identity theft in the past five years. The
A lot of people, including myself store your whole life information on a computer. Having a strong password is critical in making sure that no one can access this information, or still information, including your identity. You should not use common words, birthdays, mother maiden name, or names of relatives. To create a strong password you would want to use a combination of numbers, uppercase and lower case letters, punctuation, symbols, and it should be at least 7 or more characters long. You should change your password ideally every six months. You can also change your password by going to the start menu, finding your name, account settings, and then you click on change
Identity theft is an issue faced on a daily basis for those that are living in our wonderful state of California. For some it is common knowledge to protect your identity but for those that are not familiar with the practices of these common crooks, will cost a lifetime of savings and irreparable damage to ones credit and finances. According to the California Office of Privacy Protection, “there were more than 11 million victims of Identity Theft in the
Recommendation: When browsing always remember to use high level SSL encryption to keep your data safe.
In 2014, there were an estimated 2.3 million cases, a twenty-two percent increase from the previous year (Andrews, 2016). According to the Federal Trade Commission, identity theft complaints have also increased by more than 47 percent since 2014 and it was the second most reported crime after illegal debt collection. (“FTC Releases Annual Summary of Consumer Complaints Debt Collection, Identity Theft, and Imposter Scams Remain Top Categories of Complaints Received by FTC in 2015”, 2016) “The 2017 Identity Fraud Study, released by Javelin Strategy & Research, found that $16 billion was stolen from 15.4 million U.S. consumers in 2016, compared with $15.3 billion and 13.1 million victims in 2015. In the past six years identity thieves have stolen over $107 billion.” (“Identity Theft and Cybercrime”,
Laptop’s Physical Security- Physical locks are the best means to prevent your laptop from being stolen. All laptops should be set to require a password to log on to the computer. Use a screen guard. These guards help prevent people from peeking over your shoulder as you work on sensitive information in a public place. Never leave access numbers or passwords in your carrying case. Configure your screen saver to require a password. Purchase CompuTrace for your computer. If your computer is stolen, CompuTrace will alert the proper authorities to find and retrieve your computer. Never leave your laptop unattended, even for a moment.
The most effective way to protect your personal information on the internet is to have a strong password. A strong password should consist of a mixture of upper and lower case letters, numbers, and special characters. Ideally you want a unique password made up of at least ten characters for every website you have an account on.
Have you ever received a credit card bill at the end of the month with a ridiculous amount of money needed to be paid that you never spent? This is because of identity theft. The FTC estimates that each year, over 9 million people are affected by identity theft. According to Sally Driscoll, this is because almost anyone with a computer and a slight bit of computer knowledge can pull off identity theft. Experts also claim that identity theft is the fastest-growing crime in the world. Identity theft is a global problem that cannot be stopped without effective measures. The problem is, effective measures are very hard to come by when dealing with identity theft because almost any security protocol can be by-passed.
Identity theft affects millions of Americans every day. Scam artists and hackers lay in wait for an unsuspecting person to get caught up their scheme through ignorance or naivety so they can take full advantage of their personal information to do as they desire with it. Problem is, it infiltrates and depreciates the integral infrastructure of our society which creates a cultural lapse through the declination of economic and cultural growth and double jeopardizes an already unstable system to the brink of its destruction. To understand how
Identity theft is on the rise in the United States and Globally. The Federal Trade Commission advised that there are about nine million cases of identity theft. People who had their identity stolen often feel like they were violated. Any individual can have their identity compromised in numerous ways. Different institutions store personal information. There are several organizations that have social security numbers, bank account numbers, and credit card numbers. Colleges and Universities have people personal information stored in their databases that could be hacked. There are several companies that offer options to people to protect their identity. Most credit card companies offer the option of identity
How do you secure your identity with the Internet developing faster than can be protected? Attempting to stay ahead of the hackers and attackers has been a contentious effort since the Internet’s earliest days as a research project. Today, after thirty years of prolific development, security concerns have only increased. Designing computer systems and devices which are capable of resisting attack from within, while growing and evolving at an epidemic rate is almost an impossible endeavor. Today, identity theft is the nation’s fastest growing white collar crime and preys upon the financial resources and reputations of its victims to include children and deceased. In many