6 Tips to Preventing Identity Theft

A couple of weeks ago, I got a call from Visa asking if I could verify some of the recent charges on my credit card. Apparently, I’d racked up about $4000 worth of toys at Best Buy including, among other things, a brand-new 50” HDTV. I checked my TV and other electronics to make sure they hadn't upgraded themselves overnight, saw they hadn't, and so informed the lady on the other end of the line that those charges weren’t mine. She let me know that the charges would be taken care of and a new card would be issued to me. I thanked her and hung up, grateful for the call but lamenting the loss of a bunch of new toys.rnStories like this – and sometimes even worse – are becoming all too commonplace these days. A recent report from the General Accounting Office estimates that as many as 750,000 Americans are victims of identity theft each year. According to the Federal Trade Commission, roughly 38% of cases are still basic credit card fraud – such as when someone decided to take my card for a spin. Thankfully, if you report these kinds of thefts right away, like I did, your losses are limited to $50 by law, and most card companies offer zero liability. rnOfficials from the FTC’s Identity Theft Program say many of these thefts occur from dumpster divers – people who will sift through trash in hopes of finding credit card bills or offers that someone forgot to shred, or more commonly, from outright mail theft. Of course, there’s no way to tell for certain how it happens to everyone. And with the internet opening up everyone’s business to everyone else – offering everything from fake credit cards to mortgage loans to helping deposed Nigerian princes reclaim their rightful thrones – protecting yourself has never been a more serious business.rnSo how do you make sure your next credit card bill doesn’t hold any unexpected surprises? Here are six quick tips to help safeguard your wallet:rn1. Clean out your wallet. Try to carry only one credit card, and leave your Social Security card at home. rn2. Don’t carry any pay stubs, shred your receipts when you’re done with them, and obviously don’t write your PIN number on a cocktail napkin and forget about it. rn3. Reduce your paper bills and switch to banking and bill-paying online. Doing so will result in your statements being sent to your email. rn4. Review your credit and bank statements every month – if anything on them looks off, contact your provider. rn5. Always require photo ID verification. Write “See Photo ID” on the back of all your cards to make sure anyone who wants to swipe your card makes sure it belongs only to you. rn6. Shred all credit card offers, bank statements, and anything with your personal information listed on it.