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