Shocking as it may seem, adults are not the only targets of identity theft in this day and age. Sadly, the identity of minors – including the identities of very young minors – have been targeted by people intent on committing the crime of identity theft in this day and age. Through this article, you are provided an overview of the latest trends as they pertain to identity theft and juveniles.

In this day and age, children have legal identities. At the heart of these legal identities that children do have is the Social Security numbers that they likely were assigned not all that long after they were born. With the success that identity thieves have enjoyed stealing the identities of adults, it really was only a matter of time before people involved in identity theft set their sights on children. (more…)

How Does Identity Theft Happen?

Identity thieves use items like your driver’s license or Social Security number to assume your identity. With just a few items of personal information, an experienced identity thief can open new bank accounts and write bad checks, get new credit card accounts in your name and not pay the bills, get a personal, car loan or cash advances, create cellular phones accounts or utility services and start running up bills, change your mailing address and charge on your existing credit card accounts, illegally obtain employment or rent an apartment but refuse to pay the lease until being evicted. (more…)

When you put a fraud alert on you credit file it is because you obviously suspect someone is trying to steal your identity and open accounts in your name. But times are changing and more and more people are concerned about identity theft, a lot of people wonder if putting a fraud alert on their credit file is an option before the panic button is hit. (more…)

As we all know, Identity theft has become a major concern among people for a couple of years now but what we don’t know is that one of the highest demographic growths for identity thefts are kids. (more…)

There are a number of ways and a number of options you can choose from to prevent identity theft. In this case, you can either choose to combat identity theft alone or hire a company to help you. Still unsure about which options will work best for you? Here’s an overview to help you decide. (more…)

As the number of victims increases, identity theft is now a huge problem in America. 

However, help is available  and you are welcome to become familiar with identity theft information and current issues and laws available on various US Government websites.

The US government has a number of website that covers all the aspect and Laws of Identity Theft.

http://www.ftc.gov/

In case of identity theft you can approach the Federal Trade Commission. You’ll find lots of resources on the website of Federal Trade Commission like identity theft resources such as their Deter, Detect, Defend Brochure in PDF format; “Take Charge: Fighting Back against Identity Theft”; “What to do if your personal information has been compromised”; a test on identity theft; as well as links to various other identity theft resources. (more…)

Most financial institutions offer online banking services now. However, not all of them are safe. And not all online entities who claim to be financial institutions - and safe ones at that - are, in this world of online theft, especially identity theft. So remember these safe practices for your online banking.

1) Check out financial institutions online thoroughly before pursuing any type of online banking with them. Begin by searching the About Us or Contact Us web page on the site to find street address (not a P.O. Box), phone number and other complete info. Then check the Better Business Bureau website at www.bbb.org  to make sure there are no or very little legitimate complaints filed against the company’s website link and address.

2) As you register for accounts, you should be prompted to click a confirmation link inside a reply email. So watch for it. And afterwards, always log in to the site from your browser, not any email links. Too many thieves and unscrupulous people pose as financial entities in fake emails, inviting you to click their links and submit your access info (user name and password). Then they log in the real banking site and steal your identity and funds. So beware! And when in doubt, call the bank direct - -not from the number on the email, but from the real website or other documentation you have on file (like an invoice or statement that arrived in the postal mail). (more…)