If you were already worried about the increasing rate of identity theft, and the costs caused to both the companies and the individuals themselves, then you are in for an even bigger worry, and that is the new type of identity theft that is coming about, commonly called pretexting. (more…)

A warning for all internet and email users!

It’s almost Valentine’s Day once again but before opening up that  E-Valentine’s Card, you may want to think again.  It may not be coming from cupid but instead from someone ready to spread the so called Storm Worm virus.

The Storm Worm virus have used the various holidays in the previous year to send out millions of emails and electronic cards such as Valentine’s E-Cards.  It is a malicious software (malware) and it does infect computer machines and made it become a part of of the Storm Worm botnet.  A botnet is a network of compromised machines but under the control of a single user.  Botnets are known to be to be set up to facilitate criminal activity such as phishing, spam emails, identity theft and other servcice attacks to spread malware to other computers online.  When a user clicks on the email link, he automatically downloaded the malware and his computer system is infected.

It is very important to be extra careful in opening up any e-card emails. Make sure that you know the sender before opening e-cards.  Do not open any unsolicited e-mail and if you accidentally opened them, never click on any links provided.

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…)

A lost or stolen wallet or checkbook is the most common source of information used to commit identity theft. Wallets and checkbooks contain a number of items that are sensitive to the owner and a goldmine for identity thieves.  (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…)

You’ve taken on board the warnings about identity theft, you have your own personal shredder in the house as well as the office and you destroy any paperwork that includes personal information prior to tossing it in the trash.  (more…)

When an impostor uses another person’s name, Social Security number, credit card number, or other piece of personal information for their use without the knowledge of the owner, it is identity theft.

A victim may be unaware that they are a target of identity theft until it‘s far too late. By that time, bills that are for a credit card account the target never opened start to arrive, their credit report has debts they know nothing about or even worse, collectors start knocking at the door regarding debts they never incurred. (more…)

With the increasing prevalence of phishing cases, we have learned that it’s best to protect ourselves from falling victim to this scam. We know now how to identify a phishing email and we’ve realized that it’s wise to just ignore it and not click on any links. However, there’s also a more proactive way to further combat this scam and that is - to report phishing.  (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…)