Preventing Identity Theft

Unfortunately, one of the growing trends in today?s society is identity theft. Identity theft can happen to anyone and while most identity theft happens online due to hacking, there are dozens of situations where personal information was lost or stolen by a third party . If you are a victim of identity theft your credit rating can suffer. Here are some tips on combating bad credit and identity theft.

If your wallet has been lost, credit card stolen or your computer has been hacked it is important to notify all three credit bureaus immediately (Experian, Expedia and Trans Union). Usually, you will be able to put a block on your account, only allowing a new credit card or loan to be opened with your prior approval. Besides notifying the credit bureaus it is important to complete a police report for your records.

If you have been a victim of identity theft or would like to prevent identity theft the best preventive measure is to regularly request a copy of your credit report. Credit reports are usually given out for free to most US residents, depending on your state upon request each year. For people that think they have been a victim of identity theft, it is a good idea to request a credit report every six months or less.

Reviewing your credit report can usually tell if theft or fraud has occurred. You can easily see if a new account has been opened or new loans have been taken out. You then can contact the appropriate authorities being the lender and police. You may also want to talk to a lawyer regarding your legal rights.

Don?t be a victim of bad credit due to theft and fraud; take a look at the above advice on how to protect yourself from having bad credit due to identity theft or fraud.

Connie Barker is the owner of several financial websites including those that deal with Preventing Identity Theft

Protecting Yourself from Identity Theft

Internet mail is one of the main sources that perpetrators of Identity Theft are using to gain access to your personal information. The perpetrator may send threatening emails, or emails that seem appealing. Spam or Phishing emails are linked to Identity Theft and arrive in millions of mailboxes worldwide.

In most cases, no one is being singled out to become the next victim. It is just not worth the effort involved. Identity Thieves are not interested from whom they are stealing the identity from. Instead they focus on targeting as many people as possible as it is a numbers game. The more people they target the higher are the chances that someone will be fooled.

Now these thieves are acting on greed and intend to get rich by stealing the identities of people. The senders of such emails are challenging the receiver by using deception, hoping the receiver will give out personal information, such as bank numbers, PIN and passwords, Social Security Numbers and other precious information that the thief can use to gain control over your identity.

Although Identity Theft has become of big public interest in the last few years, the tactics that are used are nothing new. Some of the well known hackers that have broken into military computers and stolen information from financial institutions have been using social engineering for decades. They did not spend months trying to break a complex password. They simply picked up a phone, rang someone and persuaded them to divulge sensitive information to them, such as a password!

So if you want to avoid Identity Theft, then the emails that you may want to bear in mind are SPAM that claim that you have won x amount of cash, and to act now to receive your prize. Well if you have not joined a contest then chances are you have not actually won a prize. A good example is an email that claims you have won $32,000 and requests that you pay the tax on the winning, and to please respond now in order to receive this prize. Or you may receive an email claiming that you could receive scholarships or grants to attend such and such a college and to earn your degree act now by providing your personal information. These are all bogus so delete them!

Companies that already have your personal information, such as your bank have no reason to ask for this again in an email. In fact banks clearly state in their Terms & Conditions that they will Never send electronic mail requesting information from the recipient at any time. So giving your information to someone that sent an email that has your bank name listed in the header, is only asking for trouble.

Identity Thieves are thinking of everything when it comes to stealing identities, including sending emails in respected names. FDIC was targeted by thieves; the sender sent emails to recipients of the bank requesting that they provide personal information to avoid closure of their accounts. Microsoft was also targeted by thieves when emails were sent to various inboxes requesting the receiver to download patches to protect their computers. Once the receiver downloaded the attachment, a dangerous virus took control of their computer, leaving a backdoor entry that would give the hacker access to the information stored on the computer.

EBay is also a target for thieves. Some thieves purchase items on EBay claiming that they have sent the seller a check that amounts to more than the purchase price and that the seller should send the remaining amount back to the purchaser by electronic form, or else say through Western Union. The checks were found to be counterfeit and so the seller was being tricked into handing over money.

Here are some helpful tips to help you avoid Identity Theft: 1) Do not open emails if you do not trust the sender.

2) Never give out your personal information over the internet, unless you know that the company can be trusted and is using encryption to secure the web page(s).

3) Do a background check on any site you are thinking of giving your information to or you are considering buying from.

4) Never give your personal information over the phone line.

5) Do not post personal information on forums, bulletin boards or discussion boards online.

6) Conceal your personal information at all times, including at home.

7) When using ATM or other machines to make deposits, withdrawals or purchases make sure no one sees you type in your PIN number.

8) Change your PIN numbers and passwords regularly.

9) Do not just throw personal information, such as bank statements or letters containing your postal address, account numbers or any sensitive information in the trash. Put it through a shredder first.

David McKone has been involved with network security for several years, providing secure networks for both small businesses and large corporate clients. Sign up for my free newsletter and receive my special report "Computer Security" absolutely free at Computer Security

Affiliate Marketing Identity Theft

Identity theft is a hot topic today and the Internet is no exception. Aside from banking online and ordering via credit cards online security concerns, have you considered that your online affiliate identity might also be at risk?

The numbers vary depending upon the source quoted, but conservative estimates indicate that 10% to 40% of affiliate sales are lost. Why? Internet pirates can, and often do, steal, bypass or otherwise mutilate your affiliate link, thereby robbing you of hard-earned sales.

Are you fed up with lazy and unscrupulous people who, instead of using their misplaced energy to create something special of their own, prefer to just suck the life out of someone else's endeavors? Are there ways to stop these pirates who can spoil your online marketing efforts?

Yes, there are. One solution is called "redirecting," which simply means that you set up a domain name that will forward to the specific link you want to go to, but will not show your entire affiliate ID. The redirect will show only your domain name. Not only is this a "prettier" picture than those long, cumbersome, ugly, and often distracting affiliate links, but it will give you more credibility, which in turn can build more trust in you and/or what you are offering. Some companies offer e-mail forwarding as well, so that your e-mail contact information can also reflect your domain name.

Should this cost a lot? No. You can find a company that costs you pennies a day for their services. Several features should be considered when choosing a domain forwarding or redirect company. Ideally, the company should:

Charge a one-time set up fee for your domain name;

Offer unlimited sub-domains, which allow you to manage multiple affiliate programs from one domain name;

Offer domains that can be bookmarked, which means that every time a customer goes back to the site, they see your domain name (and you get the commission);

Optimize search engine indexing, allowing you to change the title, mega description and keyword tags for your domain name, easily and in minutes. Normal affiliate links are almost never indexed, so choose a domain provider that is designed to be indexed by all major search engines.

Do not require that you pay a monthly hosting fee or require you to buy software, ever; and,

Do not require software or technical expertise in order to use. Choose one that is user-friendly to your level of technical or software knowledge.

Finally, choose a keyword-loaded domain name that is easy to remember looks attractive and represents you in a professional, yet personal manner that suits your personality and/or what you are promoting.

Domain forwarding will take you a long way towards building a credible, trustworthy business. Good domain forwarding companies who offer most, if not all, of the benefits listed here, are worth their weight in gold.

For more Affiliate Marketing Articles by Ian Williamson please visit http://www.real-articles.com/Category/Affiliate/140

Identity Theft: Dont Be The Next Victim

This article which you are about to read has been written because I have been a victim of Identity Theft and I know what huge problems this creates, not to mention the severe losses involved. If I can help just one person avoid this I will be happy.

We have all at one time or another received an email directing us to visit a familiar website where we are being asked to update our personal information. The website needs you to verify or update your passwords, credit card numbers, social security number, or even your bank account number.

You recognize the business name as one that you have conducted business with in the past. So, you click on the convenient take me there link and proceed to provide all the information they have requested. Unfortunately, you find out much later that the website is bogus. It was created with the sole intent to steal your personal information. You, my friend, have just been phished.

Phishing (pronounced as fishing) is defined as the act of sending an email to a recipient falsely claiming to have an established, legitimate business. The intent of the phisher is to scam the recipient into surrendering their private information, and ultimately steal your identity.

It is not as easy as you think to spot an email phishing for information. At first glance, the email may look like it is from a legitimate company. The From field of the e-mail may have the .com address of the company mentioned in the e-mail. The clickable link even appears to take you to the companys website, when in fact, it is a fake website built to replicate the legitimate site.

Many of these people are professional criminals. They have spent a lot of time in creating emails that look authentic. Users need to review all emails requesting personal information carefully. When reviewing your email remember that the From Field can be easily changed by the sender. While it may look like it is coming from a .com you do business with, looks can be deceiving.

Now before you read any further I just want to jump in here and say that I really do hope that you will find this information helpful. I am not trying to frighten you in any way, just make you aware of what is going on out there. So, having said that, lets continue.

Also keep in mind that the phisher will go all out in trying to make their email look as legitimate as possible. They will even copy logos or images from the official site to use in their emails. Finally, they like to include a clickable link that the recipient can follow to conveniently update their information. A great way to check the legitimacy of the link is to point at the link with your mouse. Then, look in the bottom left hand screen of your computer. The actual website address to which you are being directed will show up for you to view. It is a very quick and easy way to check if you are being directed to a legitimate site.

Finally, follow the golden rule. Never, ever, click the links within the text of the e-mail, and always delete the e-mail immediately. Once you have deleted the e-mail, empty the trash box in your e-mail accounts as well.

If you are truly concerned that you are missing an important notice regarding one of your accounts, then type the full URL address of the website into your browser. At least then you can be confident that you are, in fact, being directed to the true and legitimate website.

Let me conclude by saying that this article is just by way of introduction to the subject, there is a lot of information available both in your local bookstore, on the internet, and indeed in my blog, so happy researching.

john savage has a Blog which you should read if you cannot afford to be hacked, cracked, or impersonated. Click Here to visit

Why Is Identity Fraud/Theft Rising?

A study by Javelin Strategy and Research in 2005 showed that 9.3 million Americans are victims of identity theft each year. This is about 4.25% of adults. The Home Office in the United Kingdom also claims that this crime is reaching epidemic proportions, although they do not actually collect data and statistics. But why is this becoming such a problem? This article hopes to help answer some of your questions.

In the USA today, about $52.6B is the annual cost of identity fraud, which works out at about $5,686 per victim. These statistics from the Javelin study also highlighted that anyone who has been a victim of identity fraud spends about 28 hours trying to sort out the problems. Although the financial cost is met by banks and other institutions, these costs then get passed onto consumers.

In this age of modern technology, it is possible for you to extend your credit without ever having seen your customer. There has also been a massive increase in the use of the Internet and telephones to buy goods and make payments in this way, as well as an increase in the volume of personal information help by third party companies.

You may not realise but, in the USA, a lot of your most personal information is readily available to the public including mortgage details, driving license details, and social security numbers. Although this information is not as easy to get hold of in other countries, it is still help in the relevant organisations where its many employees have easy access to this.

Another problem is with companies such as car hire agencies, car dealerships, and solicitors. They now insist on taking a copy of their client?s identity documents, such as birth certificate. So you end up handing over your identity to these companies. Unfortunately, if you need to deal with these companies, there is nothing that you can do but a way to protect yourself is to ask for any of these documents back when you no longer deal with them.

One of the most common ways of illegally accessing your personal information is still through bank statements, cheques and credit cards. This risk is increased if you throw all bank, credit card statements straight into your rubbish bin. Criminals are known to go through your rubbish looking for this information that they can use to gain access to your finances. Therefore, it is absolutely vital that you buy a paper shredder. These are not expensive, but can save you a lot of money if someone ever gained access to your accounts in this way.

The prevalence of identity theft does seem to depend on the country that you live in. A lot of Continental Europe require people to own ID cards, which must be shown when their identity needs to be proven, e.g. when opening bank accounts, hiring cars and so on. These cards are very difficult to copy and it therefore makes it very difficult for people to commit fraud. Since they are so readily available, most companies will not accept any other forms of identification.
More articles from this author can be found at http://www.identity-theft-center.com