{"id":1543,"date":"2020-11-12T10:22:05","date_gmt":"2020-11-12T16:22:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.stevenkohnle.com\/?p=1543"},"modified":"2020-11-12T10:22:05","modified_gmt":"2020-11-12T16:22:05","slug":"with-the-holidays-just-around-the-corner-how-do-you-prevent-identity-theft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stevenkohnle.com\/es\/with-the-holidays-just-around-the-corner-how-do-you-prevent-identity-theft\/","title":{"rendered":"With the Holidays Just Around the Corner – How Do you Prevent Identity Theft?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Identity theft is the criminal misuse of personal information \u2014 name, Social Security number, bank account codes and more \u2013 to illegally act in another person\u2019s name. Scammers are constantly coming up with new ways to exploit their victims, with medical identity theft, tax theft and utility fraud as some of the fastest growing categories.<\/p>\n

However, new-account fraud continues to be one of the most common ways that stolen ID information is used. That\u2019s when a criminal opens a credit card, a bank account or a loan in someone else\u2019s name<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Constant vigilance may be the only way to stay ahead of determined criminals in search of personal identity information. Here are some of the experts\u2019 favorite tactics.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Freeze it<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

A credit freeze is the most effective method. \u00a0Placing a freeze prevents any access to your credit report until you remove it. That\u2019s a headache when you want to lease a car or apply for a credit card, but it\u2019s your very best defense against new-account fraud. \u00a0However, a freeze only works if you apply it to your records at all three major credit bureaus. And don\u2019t overlook two new agencies that also monitor creditworthiness: the National Consumers Telecommunications and Utilities Exchange, which tracks your payment history with phone, cable and power companies; and Innovis, an industry up-and-comer.<\/p>\n

Track it<\/strong><\/em>Set up strict alerts on all cards and bank accounts. \u00a0Every time there\u2019s any action over $1, get an alert. \u00a0\u201cIs it annoying? \u00a0Maybe but you have to be proactive.If a charge looks unfamiliar, don\u2019t hesitate \u2014 call your bank or credit card company immediately. \u00a0There are no bad consequences to overreacting when it comes to your identity.<\/p>\n

Review it<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Check your credit report religiously. By law, you can get\u00a0one free copy from each credit bureau every year.<\/a>\u00a0 If you haven\u2019t looked at your credit report in more than three years, pull all of them at once to establish a baseline. \u00a0Next year, stagger it \u2014 pull a different one every few months.\u201d<\/p>\n

Watch for changes to basic elements, like your address, and confirm that all listed accounts are legitimate. Scan the report for \u201chard inquiries\u201d \u2014 information requests from credit-granting entities \u2014 that you did not authorize.<\/p>\n

Consider checking other reports about yourself too. \u00a0Every year request a Social Security report. \u00a0People can be dipping into your account without you knowing it.<\/p>\n

Destroy it<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cYour best friend is a shredder. \u00a0The number one way people get snagged is right at home, when they toss their bills and bank statements into the trash. \u00a0A micro-cut machine, which transforms paper into a pile of confetti, can be purchased for as little as $50.<\/p>\n

Defend it<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Sign up for online access to your bank account \u2014 even if you never plan to use it. \u00a0If you don\u2019t claim your account\u2019s unique internet link (through the IP address that identifies your computer or other device on a network), you are essentially leaving the back door unlocked. A criminal who has your personal data can break into your account by setting up online account access.<\/p>\n

Shield it<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

A wealth of personal information sometimes hides in plain sight. The QR code on an airplane boarding pass, for instance, has your home address, information about your flights, and very often your frequent flyer information. \u00a0If they get access to your account, they can use your miles to buy flights. If they know your travel plans, they also know when you\u2019re not home.<\/p>\n

People throw [boarding passes] onto the floor at the airport, they take pictures of them and post them to Instagram. Don\u2019t do this.<\/p>\n

You need to make yourself less attractive to an identity thief. \u00a0If you\u2019re a harder target, who\u2019s the bad guy going to go after?\u201d<\/p>\n<\/section>\n

Get the right coverage for you. Ask if you qualify for the most discounts in insurance!<\/p>\n

Feel free to email us or give us a call for more information!<\/p>\n

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Identity theft is the criminal misuse of personal information \u2014 name, Social Security number, bank account codes and more \u2013 to illegally act in another person\u2019s name. Scammers are constantly coming up with new ways to exploit their victims, with medical identity theft, tax theft and utility fraud as some of the fastest growing categories. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[52,40],"class_list":["post-1543","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-identity-theft","tag-we-are-farmers"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stevenkohnle.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1543","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stevenkohnle.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stevenkohnle.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stevenkohnle.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stevenkohnle.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1543"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/stevenkohnle.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1543\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stevenkohnle.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1543"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stevenkohnle.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1543"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stevenkohnle.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1543"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}