By Woody Derricks, CFP®
According to a recent survey conducted by the Federal Trade Commission1, 12.7% of people reported being a victim of identity theft over the past five years. It’s up to each individual to take critical steps to protect their personal information and make it as difficult for thieves to assume their identity. Here are some key steps to help protect yourself from identity theft.
Online Data Be smart when you’re online. Social media is a great way for thieves to learn more about you. Take steps to limit the personal information you share (employer, where you’ve lived, family members, etc.), and ensure that your privacy settings limit what others can see about you. It might be okay for your friends to know what you’ve been up to, but you don’t want to give potential thieves your personal information.
Double-check websites before you buy things to ensure they are legitimate. We often look for deals or are in such a rush that we overlook obvious signs of a phishing scam. Make sure the sites you use start with “HTTPS” and confirm the spelling of any sites you reach after clicking a link on another site.
Resist the free Wi-Fi while you’re out shopping. Hackers can easily access your devices and information if you’re on a network that doesn’t require a password. You should have to enter a password in your Wi-Fi settings before gaining access to a website. The connection isn't secure unless you enter a Wi-Fi password.
Skimmers If you’re shopping in stores, watch for devices attached to credit card readers or ATMs. If the device doesn’t look quite right, use another register or ATM to lower your risk of your credit card number being stolen. Also, don’t leave your credit card in the open so someone can take a picture of it. Take it out, run it, and immediately put it back in your wallet or purse.
PasswordsEasily remembered passwords are also easily hacked, and passwords used on multiple sites provide more opportunities for thieves. Take the time to create complex passwords that are unique for each website and update them every few months. If you’d like to have all of your passwords in one, easily accessible place, consider doing some research for a password manager.
Consider using two-factor authentication (2FA) for your accounts. With 2FA, you typically get a text or email with a code after you enter your password online. Two-factor authentication helps verify that you are the one trying to access your account. If someone else tries accessing your account, you should be immediately notified via text or email with 2FA.
Email First, don’t open an email from someone you don’t know. Nobody is giving you $1,000,000. Second, don’t click a link or open an attachment, even from people you know, if it seems suspicious. Your friends don’t usually send a web link to you with, “Hey, check this out.” We’re all busy, but don’t be too busy to carefully read and consider what you’re doing with an email.
At home A couple of easy steps to take at home are forwarding or freezing your mail delivery when you’re away from home and shredding your personal documents. When you’re out of town, thieves can get your statements out of your mailbox and use those statements to forward phones, add on services to utilities, and have credit cards issued to a different address. Taking a few minutes to go to USPS online could save countless hours of fixing problems. You can also sign up for Informed Delivery through USPS at usps.com/manage/informed-delivery.htm. Informed Delivery is a service that emails you pictures of your mail to be delivered that day. Informed Delivery can help you quickly notice if mail is stolen from your mailbox.
Make sure to shred your personal documents. Personal documents aren’t just those with your account number, birth date, or Social Security number listed. Nearly all the offers you receive in the mail for things such as credit cards, personal loans, or home loans have tracking information that a thief can use. Those firms already have most of your personal information on file and the tracking numbers can help a thief skip a few steps while getting credit under your name.
Monitor Your Accounts While taking steps to help prevent data theft is essential; you must also monitor your accounts for unauthorized activity. Yes, this means reading your statements. It can also mean using a service that allows you to review your account activity weekly.
Go online and log into your financial accounts to determine if they have an option for sending you alerts. These alerts might be able to notify you via text or email when there’s activity in your accounts or someone accessing your account online.
Often, someone will test your credit cards by charging a small amount a few times to verify that your account is active. If you’re not getting alerts for unusual activity or keeping up with your accounts online, you might miss these small charges. By the time a thief starts charging large amounts, it will be too late. While your credit card company often credits fraudulent charges, not all charges will be credited back to you. If this happens on your debit card, it can be disastrous for your checking account.
Credit Agencies Take advantage of your free annual credit report by visiting annualcreditreport.com. Regularly checking your credit report will let you see if anyone added accounts under your identity.
You may also want to contact the major credit bureaus to freeze or restrict your credit. That could help prevent someone from being able to take out a new credit line in your name. Credit freezes can also restrict someone’s ability to open a new bank or investment account under your name.
Each agency may charge a fee for freezing and unfreezing your credit unless you are already the victim of identity theft. However, some credit agencies provide a free service that is similar to freezing your credit. Keep in mind that the time and cost of setting these up are minimal compared to the time and cost of resolving identity theft.
Visit these sites to learn more about freezing your credit
The Benjamin Franklin axiom that “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” certainly applies to identity theft. Only you can take the precautions necessary to reduce the likelihood of identity theft. A little time upfront could save you significant time, stress, and money in the long run.
Investment advisory services are offered by Partnership Wealth Management, a Securities and Exchange Commission Registered Investment Advisor. The commentary presented herein contains the opinions of the firm, and this information is based upon sources believed to be reliable. No guarantee is made to the completeness or accuracy of this information. Partnership Wealth Management shall not be responsible for any trading decisions, damages, or other losses resulting from, or related to, the information, data, analyses, or opinions contained herein. This information has not been tailored to suit any individual.