Shred documents that contain Social Security or account numbers
Don’t respond to e-mails asking for Social Security number, account numbers or passwords
Only carry necessary items in a wallet
Check your credit report at least once a year to make sure no one is using your name — consumers are entitled to a free report every year from the three credit reporting organizations
If you’ve been victimized:
Contact one of the three credit reporting agencies to place a fraud alert on your file
Contact the company where account was opened and tell them it’s a fraudulent account, ask them to close it and follow-up in writing
Complete a Federal Trade Commission complaint form, available on their Web site
Take a copy of the complaint form to your local county police and file an official police report
For more information, visit the Federal Trade Commission’s Web site at www.ftc.gov.
(Betsy Broder, the assistant director of the Federal Trade Commission’s Privacy and Identity Protection Division, provided the information for these tips)
E-Mail This Article
Print This Story