There are several things you can do to reduce your chances of being a victim of identity theft. One of them is to shred papers containing account numbers, Social Security numbers and birth dates before discarding them. The simplest approach is to use a cross shredder. In contrast to straight shredders, a cross shredder cuts paper into small rectangles instead of strips. If you don't have access to a shredder, you can use a pair of scissors to cut the parts of the papers containing these numbers into small pieces. When using a cross shredder, put in the paper so that numbers on the page are horizontal. This may reduce the number or digits that are together in a shredded piece of paper. If you only have a straight shredder, you may want to use scissors to cut the results into smaller pieces.
I heard about someone who suspects that she was a victim of identity theft due to a test drive. A car dealer required her to place her Social Security number on a form. When she didn't buy the car, the form was discarded instead of being shredded. Someone found this form and opened accounts in her name. In a similar situation, you should insist that the form be returned to you or cross shredded in your presence.
One way to detect identity theft is to check your credit reports regularly. In the United States, you have the right to one credit report from each of the three major credit bureaus every 12 months. The best way to go about this is to request a different credit report every four months. Be sure that it has been at least 12 months since you requested a report from a given bureau. To request a report, you could access https://www.AnnualCreditReport.com. However, there may be sales pitches on this site. Instead, you may want to call 1-877-322-8228 from your home phone. When you receive a report, try to match every account to a credit card, debit card, loan or other account. Be especially suspicious of new accounts when you haven't opened any recently. Also look for wrong addresses that differ by more than minor errors such as north vs. south.
Other things you can do include requesting fraud alerts or credit freezes. If you do apply for credit freezes, be sure to retain the numeric passwords or PINs that you receive. You will need them to remove or suspend the freezes. If you lose these numbers, you will have a hard time removing the freezes. For example, you may need to re-apply for the freezes and then use the new passwords to remove them. For more information, see the article "Paying for protection?," which also advises against paying for a service to protect against identity theft [1].
When you are using a credit or debit card to pay for something, watch out for shoulder surfers. These are people who look at your card to memorize its numbers and later use them for a purchase. If you see someone who is standing too close, try to cover the numbers with a hand and/or say random numbers to interfere with the attacker's remembering your card number. You may also ask the clerk to ask someone to move the guy away from you.
Similarly, use a hand or envelope to cover the keypad when you enter your PIN into an ATM. Also look for anything sticking out of the slot. This may be a device to record the card's numbers. If you see something like that, pull it out and discard it, or go elsewhere.
For more information on preventing identity theft, browse to the Federal Trade Commission's site at http://www.ftc.gov/idtheft. To avoid being overwhelmed by the amount of information, you may want to start with their brochure titled "Fighting Back Against Identity Theft" [2].
[1] Colker, David, "Paying for protection?," Los Angeles Times, Feb. 24, 2008, p. C6.
[2] "Fighting Back Against Identity Theft," http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/idtheft/idt01.shtm.
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Last updated: 9-April-2008