Identity theft.....one of the most valuable things you can lose and how to prevent it.

Identity theft is a growing menace in our society that can cause great stress and even wreck peoples financial futures. In this article we discuss what is involved and how to prevent your identity and privacy being stolen.

So what does it mean?

Identity theft literally means someone stealing your identity. It can range from and include many aspects such as, your drivers license number, i.d. card number, social security number, credit card and banking details, name and address. All of these and more details about you. Simply having your social security number allows thieves to obtain work while not legal to do so, such as illegal immigrants, obtain and use credit using your hard earned score (and most likely not pay and destroying your score in the process). Credit card details can of course be used to make illegal purchases. I.D. card numbers can be used for all kinds of illegal activity, perhaps a felon on the run. The list goes on and on, but having your identity in the hands of criminals can only result in bad news for you and most likely your finances.

So how do they get my details if I didn't lose my cards?

By far one of the most common methods is online identity theft. Computer criminals use various programs which can be embedded in e.mails or on websites, as part of down loads such as video files, music etc. These programs wait for you to type in details such as credit card numbers etc and send them back to the criminal. Now think just how much information you give out while making an online purchase....address...name...etc. Some even set up bogus websites to get you to fill out forms to purchase one thing or another purely to get your details. This is a modern addition to the criminals library of methods, which still includes stealing or finding your wallet, having a card reader set up and observing you put your pin number in so they can create a counterfeit card. Modern criminals are very very advanced, identity theft was an estimated $50 billion enterprise last year, so you can imagine the level of the participants. Most reputable sites such as banks etc use military encryption techniques with online forms and are as safe as can be but some other sites do not, so be aware before typing in your details.

So what can I do and how do I know if my identities been stolen?

If your identities been stolen the results could be dire as discussed above. Usual symptoms are unexplained entry's on your credit history, credit cards, car loans etc. Even collection notices could be sent to you if you don't catch it in time. Your best course of action is to check your credit history. After doing so, then you must go on to protect it.