How to Protect Against Identity Theft

If you have surfed around this blog a bit, feel free to consider yourself a bit of an expert on the subject of identity theft. You understand that this is a crime wave. You know credit card fraud accounts for barely 1/4 of the total picture -- and not even the most damaging 1/4 at that. You have read a few horror stories.  Now you're ready to act and protect your family against identity theft. Where to begin?

A few steps to take:

• First of all, protect your children. Check their credit reports at least a couple times a year. Children are popular victims because the criminal can get away with it for many years before the child needs to get a loan or apply for financial aid. Keep track of your kids' identities.
• Keep track of where your family's information goes. This can be very helpful in tracking down the criminals. Make a log of every time you submit personal information anywhere, especially your SSN. If your identity is compromised, you can go back through that log and isolate suspects.
• For the love of Pete, shred every single document you throw in the garbage. Even a birthday card can give an identity thief a bit of information that they can use against you (your birthday). Holiday cards should also be shredded as they can reveal things like, say, your mother's maiden name.
• For the love of Petrov, protect your computer. Chances are that this will not be a vector for identity theft, but minimize those chances further by keeping a tight lid on things. I can recommend a good product for protecting your Windows PC.
• If your personal information is compromised -- or if you think it might have been -- inform the credit bureaus and law enforcement immediately. (That's a no-brainer, but a lot of people don't do it for some strange reason.)
• Protect yourself and your spouse by subscribing to a service like Identity Lookout. If you don't use Identity Lookout or don't like me for some reason, please use another one of these services. They're well worth the miniscule investment. (Another no-brainer, really...)

May you get lucky and never fall victim to this crime. I wouldn't wish that nightmare on my worst enemy.

Identity Theft Myths and Facts

There are a lot of misconceptions about identity theft. I'd like to clear a few of those up for you.

Myth: The main danger from this crime is a financial one.

Fact: The financial losses from identity theft are massive, to be sure, totalling $46 billion. This would more accurately be called identity fraud, though. Identity theft facilitates many other types of criminal activity such as terrorism, blackmail, pedophilia and tax evasion.

Myth: Identity theft is pretty cut-and-dried -- someone steals your SSN or credit card information and opens accounts in your name.

Fact: Again, this would be more appropriately termed "identity fraud." The truth is that identity theft takes many forms. Sometimes a stolen identity is not even used by the criminal, as in the case of database break-ins. In many cases the person will simply clone the victim's identity to conceal themselves from authorities, a common practice amoung pedophiles and ex-convicts. In some cases the stolen identity is used to obtain medical treatment. In some cases, the identity is only partially stolen (common among illegal immigrants who will use Joe Blow's SSN under the name Paco Bellgrande.)

Myth: I don't need to worry about identity theft because I have nothing to steal.

Fact: Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, the unemployed have recently become a favorite target of identity thieves. Why? Because they probably will not invest the 30 cents a day to protect themselves and thus make easy targets.

Myth: If I do become a victim, I am protected from financial loss.

Fact: It is true that legislation puts the burden on financial institutions, but it is also true that the burden of proving that your identity was stolen falls on the victim. It can take years to sort everything out. How much is your time worth? Plus, as mentioned, financial losses are only a tiny part of the picture.

As you can see, there are many misconceptions about this crime. The main fact that needs to be known is that 10 million Americans will become victims every year. You don't want to be one of them, do you?

Do yourself a favor and protect yourself.

Legal Consequences of Identity Theft

This post is about the penalties -- specifically jail time -- for committing identity theft. What are the consequences for committing identity theft?

The short answer: Not strict enough to deter hardcore criminals from stealing your personal information.

The charge is "aggravated identity theft." The maximum penalty for committing it is 15 years in prison if the damages were over $1,000 in a one-year period. For lesser amounts, the penalty can be a slap on the wrist. Even for larger amounts, the perpetrator might receive probation if their record is otherwise clean.

Really, the way the laws are written now, it is a charge to be tacked on when child molesters, violent criminals, and big-time fraudsters commit "worse" crimes. With budgets being what they are, the average identity thief has to work pretty hard at getting thrown in jail for any length of time. As many ID thieves are new to the crime world, driven by desperation, they often get off with probation.

This explains, in part, the reason for the incredible popularity of this crime among the undesirables of our society. The other part is that they are so often not caught.

My personal opinion is that the penalties should be severe. If you educate yourself about this issue, you will know that the damage done by identity theft is enormous. Surf around this blog and you'll see.

Please, I beg you, protect yourself!

How Is Identity Theft Committed?

How does an identity thief accomplish the feat of stealing another person's identity and "becoming" that person? It seems like it should be a pretty tough thing to do, right?

Here is the great paradox: Back in the good old days, before Social Security numbers, computer databases, driver's licenses, credit bureaus, and all the other ways that various government and commercial entities track people, there was no such thing as identity theft. Impersonation, sure, but not the outright stealing of someone's identity. Back then, a criminal might roll into town and say, "Hi, I'm Sharon SoAndSo of Philadelphia. I'd like $20 in credit at the general store."

If "Sharon SoAndSo" looked like a trustworthy person, she got credit. Her name didn't much matter. If she robbed the local bank and skipped town, the U.S. Marshall Service might make a trip to Philly to inquire about Sharon SoAndSo, and when they saw with their own two eyes that you were not the woman who robbed the bank, they knew that that person was impersonating you.

Now things are different. We're all just numbers. If your numbers find their way into the wrong hands, the person who has them can steal your identity. The worst part? For all intents and purposes, they are you.

Basically, identity theft is accomplished when the criminal gets their hands on enough information about you to fill in the blanks. If they know your date of birth and your address, they can accomplish more than you think. (NEVER throw birthday cards in the trash without shredding them thoroughly first!) If they get their hands on your Social Security number, you're as good as toast. (Keep a record of every place you submit your SSN so that if your identity is stolen, you can give that information to the authorities to help them track down the crooks.)

I'm not going to give much more information than that for obvious reasons. Basically, protect your personal information because in this day of data mining, it is you. The IRS agent who shows up on your doorstep to audit you for income you earned as an exotic dancer in Seattle (when you live in Miami) doesn't care if you look like a nice person. They care about the taxes "you" didn't pay as you led "your" double life in Seattle.

Protect yourself. This is real.

Identity Theft Horror Stories... and YOU

Hellish tales of terror are not only for Halloween when it comes to identity theft.

The ghosts and goblins are everywhere: They're hacking your computer, working in your doctor's office, even sifting through your trash late at night, patiently putting the pieces of information together that give them enough of you to steal your life.

But you're smart, right? You protect yourself. If that nice receptionist at your dentist's office turns out to have a shopping addiction and uses your Social Security number to get a credit card, you'll find out about it fast, right? I should certainly hope so. Because if you don't, you could end up right in the middle of one of these true horror stories:

• You could be buying materials for terrorists.


• You could be buying guns for criminals who use your identity to pass background checks.


• You could be helping a sexual predator blend in to the community. (This story is VERY common.)


• You could be helping a tax cheat fly around the world in style.


• You might just find yourself accused of a heinous crime you did not commit, maybe something totally disgusting.


• You could end up spending years trying to clear up your destroyed credit rating.

Oh, I could go on, but you're smart. You get the point. Everyone knows that when you face a threat, you protect yourself. It's so easy to do!

The great thing about protecting yourself from identity theft, though, is that you are also protecting society. How? The earlier identity theft is picked up on, the better the chances of nabbing the crooks. The investment of 30 cents a day that you make in your own safety and that of your loved ones is also an investment in society. Think of how much better the world would be if we all made it tougher for the scumbags of the world to steal our personal information. Think of how much easier you will sleep at night while keeping the horror of identity theft at bay.

It's a no-brainer. Try it for free!

You Should Buy Identity Theft Protection

People who know me have asked me about this blog. They're like, "What's up with that identity theft protection blog of yours?"

And I act puzzled even though I know what they're getting at, "What do you mean?"

"It looks like you're just trying to sell that identity theft protection product."

"Yeah, what of it?"

"Well, it's just... a little crass of you. You're usually so informative."

This offends me a little, frankly. Crass? Trying to protect people from the fastest growing crime trend in the world is crass? Is that even a word? Jeez, it's not like I'm telling people they can make a jillion dollars on the Internet if only they pay $399 for my special secret "program." The product I'm promoting happens to be freakin' amazing, inexpensive, and -- I dare say -- necessary in this day and age. Every time someone tries it, it makes them safer. It makes me feel good to help people protect themselves. What's wrong with that? It's an honest dollar.

Do I want to sell you something? Not exactly. I want you to be safe, and I want to give you a chance to try a way of being safe for free. If that's crass, then so am I.

Oh, and by the way, this blog is informative.
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PS -- I'll make you a deal right now: I won't sell you anything you don't need. You need this

The Best Protection Against Identity Theft

Remember when you were a kid, how safe you felt in the presence of your parents? Everybody wants that feeling. Personally, I would give almost anything to have that feeling again.

Imagine your guardian angel, constantly hovering over your shoulder to protect you. No matter how strongly you believe in this entity, you cannot know for an indisputable fact that it exists. Wouldn't it be nice to remove that doubt!

I'm not going to beat around the bush here: You are under a constant threat from identity theft. It is something worth worrying about. If it happens to you, it will be a headache at best and a total nightmare at worst. The statistics and facts say that there is a very good chance that you will become a victim at some point. I wish I could tell you that it's all ponies and rainbows out there, but the world is full of creeps, crooks, and criminals. Those people will do everything from stealing your money to committing other crimes under your name.

You want to protect yourself from that, don't you? People have said that e-mail notifications from their identity theft protection services feel like a guardian angel sending them a message. It's like your mom holding your hand as you crossed the street when you were little. It's a great feeling!

Best of all, it helps law enforcement to catch these creeps and put them away so that they can't harm others. Identity theft often occurs over a period of months or years before the victim finds out. In that case, it is almost impossible to catch the offender. If you get a notice within minutes of strange activity, you can call out the cavalry and catch the thieves within hours. It's amazing, let me tell you, and it's happening every day now. Working together, we can put a dent in this crime that affects 10 million new victims each year.

Are you ready to protect your family and join the fight? Try it for free.