Updated September 10, 2017
Each year the average financial loss attributed to identity theft hits a new high. States like Arizona, California, Florida, Texas and Nevada are among the states with the highest identity theft complaints per year. Identity theft is defined as the misuse of personal information to either open a new account and/or for fraudulent purposes.
Recently, Equifax, one of three largest American consumer credit reporting agency, had a massive breach. According to the Federal Trade Commission the breach lasted from mid-May through July. The hackers hackers accessed people's names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses and insome instances, driver's license numbers. They also stole credit card numbers for 209,000 people and dispute documents with personal identifying information for about 182,000 people.
How then can you protect yourself from identity thieves?
Here are five proven quick easy steps design to lower your risk of becoming a victim of identity theft and to keep you safe. I recommend doing all five steps to minimize your risk.
1. Don't over expose or over share your information online. This seems obvious but often time people overlook this a lot. Also, it is recommended that you set the proper security to your online profiles such as Facebook.
2. Destroy private records and statements. Putting your private records, bank statements, and other information into the trash allows thieves the easiest access to your information. Shredding this information with a crosscut shredding system is recommended.
3. Create Strong Passwords. According to Microsoft, passwords provide the first line of defense against unauthorized access to your computer. The stronger your password, the more protected your computer will be from hackers and malicious software.
4. Always be on guard for phishing scams. Phishing is the activity of defrauding an online account holder of financial information by posing as a legitimate company. Several times the perpetrator sends out legitimate looking emails to gain access to your personal and financial information. To avoid phishing scams, when you receive a suspicious looking emails never click on tabs inside the emails. Instead go directly to the company's website or contact the company directly.
5. Have a monitor/restoration system in place. In light of the recent massive data breach with Equifax, this by far is one of the most important steps to protecting yourself. IDShield by Kroll has one of the most affordable yet complex system on the market today. They give a 5 million dollar service guarantee and offer restoration services by licensed professional investigators.
Protect yourself and your family today.
Using this proven strategy will definitely lower your risk of having your identity stolen and having to spend months of trying to restore it yourself. Stay safe.
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Daniel C. Lewis is known across the country as an identity theft expert. Daniel is also an Independent Associate with LegalShield. He was named in by the National Notary Association as the 2010 National Notary of the Year. He was also named that same year by the Indiana Secretary of State as an Honorary Secretary of State. Daniel is a entrepreneur, writer, video editor, and was the Executive Director of the radio show "We Are Too Smart To Live Like This".
