metaViper

So far in this five part series we’ve talked about many ways to prevent identity theft through simple techniques and what to do if you become a victim. Now let’s focus on some specific examples of how identity thieves get the information they need to make a move and some of their motives.

Peer-to-Peer networks (P2P) such as Limewire, Kazaa, and Morpheus can quickly connect you to volumes of content. But remember, by default those programs are opening up your computer for others to search also! That means any confidential document stored on your hard drive is at risk. If you’re going to use P2P services, be sure to configure them to share only a specific directory that contains non-confidential documents. Searching keywords like “passwords” or “credit cards” brings up a wealth of personal documents in Kazaa. Here is a video and additional info on the identity risks associated with using P2P networks.

Even though they may not be using P2P networks to solve their dilemma, illegal immigrants in the United States need a means of finding work. Since they have no legal recourse, demand for stolen identities among this segment of the population is high — a fertile market for identity thieves.

In order to meet the demand for identities “for sale”, thieves have to become more efficient. That has resulted in a myriad of phishing scams, which is the act of convincing someone to willingly hand over personal information through deception. On the Internet, if a web site seems to be asking for too much information, enter the destination web address yourself instead of following a link. It’s also good to purge your system of spyware.

If phishing doesn’t work, some thieves will resort to direct phone calls, as they did with the recent “$299″ Medicare scams against seniors. Identity thieves phoned seniors and offered to help them navigate through Medicare Part D for a fee. Seniors who accepted the offer handed over their bank account information which the scammer promptly billed. A sad but true story, and seniors looking for help make easy targets for identity thieves.

The best way to approach this reality is to think about where you’re putting personal information and why. If you can’t answer that question in a reasonable way, don’t share the info.

It is metaViper’s hope this series has helped educate your approach toward identity theft!

A couple of days ago we talked about six steps you can take toward restoring your good name after becoming a victim of identity theft. There’s another option, but it only applies in certain states.

It’s called locking your credit report, which means that no potential creditor or employer may look at your credit report, or make changes to it. This option is available in specific states: New Jersey, Louisiana, Texas, Vermont, Washington, Nevada, Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, North Carolina and Colorado. Texas, Vermont, Illinois and Washington allow it for people have been victims of identity theft previously. Each of the major credit reporting agencies generally charges a small fee for the service. It’s an great way to stop an identity thief from enjoying their illicit spending spree.

BankRate has written an excellent article with the details on what locking your credit means.

To make this measure most effective, we need a federal law that outlines citizen rights in regards to credit report locking. Putting the consumer in charge of monitoring their own credit report makes sense — as long as they have the right tools.

In this segment of our series on Identity Theft, we’ll identity seven different services that you can use to protect yourself from identity thieves.

*Please note, metaViper has no financial interest vested in any of these options. None of the links in this article are affiliate links.*

1. AnnualCreditReport.com provides an easy way for you to order a free credit report from each of the big three reporting agencies. This is a great first stop to understand what creditors are looking at when they pull up your credit history, and the service is free.
2. TrustedID sells an “IDFreeze” package for $12.95 per month that includes a million dollar guarantee (standard in the industry). This looks like a solid option but more expensive than other companies.
3. StolenID Search is a service provided by TrustedID (see above) that looks for your credit card or Social Security Number (SSN) and tells you if it’s a compromised number.I had some hesitation about putting my SSN number in that search box so I decided to test it with a credit card number. There were no results, which was a relief but also begged the question: how extensive is their database?
4. LifeLock, this service is pretty bold. The CEO puts his SSN on the front page almost as a dare for people to try opening accounts in his name. Like TrustedID, they also provide a million dollar insurance policy. LifeLock sends out notifcations to creditors that they must ask you directly before opening any new credit, “drastically” reduces junk mail, and will order your free credit reports for you each year. They charge $10 per month.
5. GreenDimes charges a dime per day ($36/year) to reduce junk mail and they’ll plant a tree on your behalf every month. Since junk mail is a leading source of identity theft this is a positive step, though not as comprehensive as some of the other options listed here.
6. Fake Name Generator creates a fictitious identity for you to use as needed complete with name, address, and phone number. This could be helpful if you’re signing up for a form or service online that you don’t trust completely. Say hello to Andrew Salcedo from Casper, WY! Choose a gender, ethnicity and country to create an alias identity.
7. Your bank or credit union. Check with the institution you currently do business with. They’ll sometimes offer discounts for existing customers. Typically banks will monitor credit reports and notify you of changes but won’t do anything proactively to reduce the chance of identity theft in the first place (such as reducing junk mail or flagging your account for identity checks).

Welcome to part two of metaViper’s Shielding Your Identity from Theft series, this round we’ll take a look at the worst case scenario: what to do if someone has stolen your identity.

1. Call one of the three credit rating agencies. Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion. Contacting just one of them establishes a fraud alert with all three, which requires merchants to verify identity before accepting any credit payments in your name.
2. Call creditors with accounts in your name and notify them that you are a victim of fraud.
3. Change the passwords in all of your online accounts.
4. Get a copy of your credit report from each of the three credit reporting agencies and check for any additional accounts opened without your knowledge.
5. Keep records of your communications and discoveries as this can be used in court as evidence.
6. Take a deep breath and rally your determination. Creditors will be suspicious, even if your previous track record is immaculate.

References: Credit Score Tips & Advice, The Consumerist

For the next five days, metaViper will focus on finding solutions and information surrounding identity theft. These posts will focus on how identity thieves steal your personal information and what you can do to protect yourself.

I was motivated to write this series after listening to a podcast of the Diane Rehm show tonight when she interviewed Frank Abagnale. To see a movie of Frank’s life as a young criminal stealing over $4 million from 1963 to 1969 (worth about $20 million now) be sure to check out Catch Me If You Can. He now focuses on educating the public on how to address identity theft.

A few tidbits I took away from the show:

• Avoid using checks. They contain too much personal information that is easily duplicated. Use credit cards instead as that puts the credit card company’s money at risk, not yours.
• Buy a credit monitoring service that provides live updates on what’s happening with your credit rating.
• Pay attention to who you’re sharing personal information with, this is a good topic to be paranoid about.

Beyond that advice, realize that all the information you put online in social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook is indexed by search engines which becomes a sort of permanent record. This information is readily available to identity thieves and it’s become common practice for employers to do some basic searches online for your name. Anyone can read about what you did at the bar last night if you write about it in the public space.

Want to see where you stand? An excellent place to discover your online reputation is Pipl. They utilize “deep web” search techniques to seek out your name wherever it may hide on the inter-web. Experimenting with a few searches here can be very enlightening. It includes phone book references, public records searches, historical references, and social networking sites.

More to come in metaViper’s five part series on identity theft!