Protect Your Financial Identity

Your wallet’s been stolen and you’ve reported your credit card loss to your creditors. But high credit charges can be the least of your worries. Your identity can be stolen.

Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes of the 90's and defrauds more than 1000 people a year out of billions of dollars. How can you protect yourself?

1. Choose a number other than your social security for your driver's license and be careful in giving your Soc. Sec. number to anyone.
2. Do not send credit card, bank account numbers, your Social Security #’s or other sensitive data over the Internet unless it’s a secured connection.
3. Review your phone bill, cell phone bill, bank & credit card statements every month.
4. Review your credit report annually for inquiries you did not approve or accounts you did not open.
5. Shred unwanted papers containing sensitive account information.

Source: Dollar, P. (1999, November). Someone stole my identity. Life at Lincoln University, 11.