Practical Suggestions for Protecting Yourself From Identity Theft

It's no surprise that thousands of Americans are victimized by identity theft each year. Last year more than 9,000,000 people were victims of identity theft amounting to some $45 billion dollars.

By the time the average person realizes they have become a victim of identity theft; it is much too late. By this point, the victim's financial stability and credit rating may be impacted significantly.

What can you to to protect yourself from identity theft? Here are some useful suggestions for you...

• Place passwords on your credit card, bank, and phone accounts. Avoid using easily available information like your mother's maiden name, your birth date, the last four digits of your SSN or your phone number, or a series of consecutive numbers.
• Secure personal information in your home, especially if you have roommates, employ outside help, or are having work done in your home.
• Use a paper shredder to shred sensitive documents before discarding them.
• Ask about information security procedures in your workplace or at businesses, doctor's offices or other institutions that collect your personally identifying information. Find out who has access to your personal information and verify that it is handled securely. Ask about the disposal procedures for those records as well. Find out if your information will be shared with anyone else. If so, ask how your information can be kept confidential.
• Never tell anyone your personal information over the phone or send it through email, or fax. Most legitimate companies will not request this information from you via phone or any other unprotected source.
• Monitor your credit report on a monthly basis to watch for unusual activitiy. Many credit report services will alert you to such activity and even assist you in resolving issues. We have partnered with Equifax to offer you their Credit Watch product.

By following these steps you can lower your risk of becoming an identity theft victim. Being informed is the most valuable protection against identity theft.

Bryan A. Mjaanes is the owner of the successful ReviewCardOffers website - a credit card offer comparison site where you can review more than 130 credit card offers and apply online.

---

Trade Credit: How to Determine if You Should Offer Net-30 Terms to Your Customers

What is trade credit?One of the major differences between consumer... Read More

10 Dirty Tricks Credit Card Companies Play

The credit card companies make billions each year in legitimate... Read More

Minimize your Risk for Identity Theft

Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in America. According... Read More

Consumer Credit Reports

A consumer credit report is a factual record of an... Read More

Small Business Credit Cards

So what do you look for when applying for a... Read More

Pitfalls of the Credit Industry

The credit industry if rife with pitfalls. If you have... Read More

Credit Card Balance Transfers Explained

What is a balance transfer ? A balance transfer can... Read More

10 Ways To Protect Your Financial Identity Being Used For Someone Else?s Shopping Spree

Someone impersonating you could be spending your hard-earned money.Impossible! Not... Read More

How to Repair a Bad Credit Rating

If you have a bad credit rating, then you might... Read More

Your Credit Card May Be Costing More Than You Think!

Do you know what your credit card is truly costing... Read More

ChexSystems: Who They Are and How it Affects You

ChexSystems is a company that maintains a subscriber membership service... Read More

Keep Your Credit History Clean - Remove A Negative Credit Record From Credit Report

The three major credit bureaus, Experian, Equifax and Trans Union... Read More

How Do I Establish A Good Line of Credit?

A line of credit, roughly defined, is the amount of... Read More

Credit Repair: How To Deal With Your Creditors

If you are in danger of credit problems because you... Read More

Figuring Out the Ever Nebulous Numbers Called Credit Scores

Credit Score FactorsThe information contained on our credit reports affect... Read More

Cutting Credit Card Costs

What are the APRs charged by the credit cards in... Read More

Why Does Your Credit Card Rate Keep Going Up?

Have your read your credit card contract through completely? Do... Read More

Opting For A Credit Card? Check Out Certain Terms

You've just received a "pre-approved" credit card offer in your... Read More

Free Credit Report ? Watch Out for Scams

Many people may still not be aware of an amendment... Read More

What Is A FICO Score?

A credit score is most commonly known as a FICO... Read More

The Three Largest Factors In Your Interest Rate

There are three major factors that affect how much you... Read More

Your Guide On Choosing a Credit Card To Suit You

Reach into your wallet or purse, pull out a card,... Read More

How To Repair Your Credit Report

A credit report is run on a buyer when he... Read More

Is it Safe to Use Online Car Finance?

Online car finance is convenient. You can apply over the... Read More

Identity Theft ? Additional Protection for Soldiers on Active Duty

Congress passed the Fair Credit Reporting Act several years ago... Read More