10 Types of Identity Theft and How You Can Prevent Them
Due to the change in technology, the methods used by criminals to steal identities change rapidly from time to time. The following are some of the methods that have been used in the past and can be divided into three categories.
Information given away
This is the simplest method that people use to steal other people’s identity. This is mostly seen on social networking sites. It is imperative that you have privacy controls on your social networking sites and do not accept friend requests from people you do not know.
offline methods
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pretexting
This occurs when the identity thief contacts a business posing as a legitimate customer to request details of their contact information.
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skimming
Capture of the data encoded in the magnetic stripes on the back of credit cards and eftpos. This data is then placed on a black card and used to access the account.
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shoulder surfing
This is looking over an individual’s shoulder, while entering their pin at an ATM, when using internet banking in a public place or at an eftpos terminal.
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Theft of wallet or document
This is stealing or acquiring a document that belongs to a person and using the information on that document, if it is a wallet there is likely to be a lot of information about the person in the wallet.
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Theft of business records
This involves stealing data from a company and can be paper records or computerized data. The data can be in large numbers than pretexts and both can also involve staff members.
online methods
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malware
This is software used to cause damage to a computer system or to subvert it for a use other than its intended use. Some of the malware includes worms, Trojan horses, backdoors, screen scrapers, root kits, and spyware.
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Identity fraud
This is enticing people to provide information via emails and mirror websites that appear to come from legitimate businesses.
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smishing
However, this is the same as phishing; it is generally directed towards cell phones. Take note as smartphones go, so does smishing.
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spam
These are unsolicited electronic messages that can be used by criminals to carry out phishing or deliver malware.
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To hack
This is exploiting vulnerabilities in an electronic system or computer software with the intent to steal personal data.
How to prevent identity theft
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Be careful with your private information in terms of how much you give and who you give it to.
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Always confirm why someone or an organization is asking for your identity information and find out what they intend to do with it.
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Always be wary of unexpected events like letters from creditors or bank transactions that you can’t remember. These could be as a result of identity theft.
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Be sure to remove all personal information from your personal computer before disposing of it.
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Be sure to properly dispose of, such as shredding or burning, your bank statements, electric bills, and any pieces of correspondence that have your name and address on them. These documents should never be thrown in a public dumpster or recycling bin.
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If you are banking online, do not bank on shared or public computers.
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Go to an identity theft insurance program. These protection plans are important because:
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Identity theft can not only be related to financial loss, but you can be sued for committing fraud or other illegal activities, making you liable.
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Most insurers take it upon themselves to offer credit monitoring and fraud resolution and restoration. This is separate from your coverage of expenses after your loss.
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Insurers also advise you what to do in case of identity theft
What to do if you are a victim of identity theft
– Put a fraud alert on your credit reports
This puts a red flag on your credit report and notifies lenders and creditors that they should be more careful in verifying your identity before extending any credit.
– Contact the institution directly affected
For example, if your credit card was stolen, report the problem to your credit card issuer.
– File a police report.
To complete your identity theft report, contact your police officer and report the theft. The theft report will help you in dealing with creditor reporting agencies.
– Protect your social security number
Contact the Social Security Administration and the Internal Revenue Service to protect your Social Security number.
– Contact the federal trade commission
In this case, you can file an identity theft affidavit and create an identity theft report.