• The next time you grab a bite to eat, choose to pay for your meal at the register instead of giving your credit card to the waiter. There have been many cases where waiters took credit cards and stole credit card information using small devices called skimmers. You can reduce the risk of this from happening simply by paying for your meal for yourself at the front register.
• When you give your card to a retailer, get it back in a reasonable amount of time. If the employee has it longer than you deem necessary, bring it to the manager’s attention and get your card back ASAP.
• When you have your card in your hand while in line at the register, keep the numbers hidden from other individuals. It is quite common for identity thieves to snap pictures of credit cards using a cell phone; and this act can be completed quickly and go unnoticed by the consumer.
• If a store does not have security cameras at the registers, move on to a different retailer. Although PCI data security standards require retailers to have security cameras at areas where credit card transactions take place, many do not, thereby leaving the retailer vulnerable to credit card theft, especially by employees.
• Avoid leaving a tip on your credit card. Service employees may use this opportunity to add an additional tip, and it often goes unnoticed by the consumer. Instead of leaving a tip on a credit card, opt to instead leave a cash tip.
• If you use an ATM or card reader, check for signs of tampering. In particular, look at the card reader closely and do not use it if you see anything out of the ordinary, such as tape holding it on, as this could indicate the presence of a skimming device.

Here are ways your college student can help protect himself from identity theft:

• Lock the door room door. This can’t be overstated, as this single piece of advice can prevent most thefts while away at college. Many college students inadvertently leave their dorm room door open, even if it’s just for a few minutes to greet a friend or fetch their meal, and find their belongings – and often their identity – stolen.
• Mark all personal property clearly. Personalizing your laptop in a visible way is a great way to deter theft, as a thief won’t want to be caught with an easily identifiable laptop.
• Don’t leave your personal computer or laptop vulnerable; use password protection. Your laptop should be protected with a password, as to prevent another individual from quickly logging on and obtaining your personal information.
• Watch what you reveal on social networking sites.– Many identity thieves look for individuals who inadvertently share personal information with others on social networking sites, such as Facebook and MySpace. As such, never share your birth date, address or any other information that can be used against you.
• Write down your laptop’s serial number, make and model and keep it in a safe place so you can provide this information to campus police if your laptop should be stolen. You may also be able to file an insurance claim for your stolen laptop, and you will need this information to do so.
• Get a shredder and use it. One of the easiest ways for an identity thief to obtain your personal information is by simply looking through the trash. It is therefore always best to shred any personal or financial information, such as bank and credit card statements.
• Ask the college about network security and learn how to protect yourself and your personal identity found on your computer.

1. Contact your local police department and report the theft. Once the theft has been reported, the police should be able to provide you with a copy of the report. A copy of a police report will become very important as you and the credit bureaus and creditors perform investigations regarding the identity theft.
2. Contact all three credit reporting agencies (TransUnion, Experian and Equifax) to report the theft. They will likely request a copy of the police report, so send them along. Each of the credit reporting bureaus will do a couple things at this point: They will freeze your credit report and place a fraud alert on it; and they will open a fraud investigation on your behalf. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the credit reporting bureau must investigate the claims within 30 days. Any information they find on your report that cannot be verified with the appropriate creditors must be removed within these 30 days.
3. In addition to sending the credit reporting agencies a copy of the police report, send a written letter, as well, stating in clear terms what happened. Often times, a letter from you will provide future creditors with information needed to understand your credit status.
4. Any creditors or lenders associated with the identity theft should be immediately contacted. They, too, will likely want a copy of the police report. They will also typically perform their own investigation of the matter. Ask the credit reporting agencies if they will also contact the appropriate creditors and provide them with information regarding their investigation.
5. You may be unable to open new credit accounts or take out new loans during this time. Although this may be quite inconvenient, it is important to allow the credit bureaus and the police to finish their investigations and clear your name of the fraud.
6. Going forward, it is important to keep the fraud alert on your credit report and check your credit report frequently over the next year.

If you don’t have a good shredder in your possession, you could be setting yourself up for identity theft. In general, if you have something in your possession that you wouldn’t feel comfortable having someone else look at, shred it.

In fact, identity theft criminals need very little information to steal your identity. For example, with your Social Security number in hand, criminals can apply for everything from credit cards to personal loans. And you’d be surprised to see exactly what information your garbage is giving to identity thieves. If you don’t think criminals would go through the effort of diving into your dumpster to retrieve your personal information, think again.

The good news is that purchasing and using a shredder involves very little hassle on your part. Simply by throwing your personal paperwork into a cross-shredder, you can significantly decrease your chances of becoming the next identity theft victim.

From households to businesses, everyone should make a point to shred personal information before discarding it. So, what should you shred?

• Bank statements
• Canceled or blank checks
• Credit card offers
• Credit card statements
• Financial statements
• Personal bills
• Legal papers
• Insurance statements
• Income tax records
• Medical bills

Shredders are a nice convenience, and are priced quite reasonably, too. Most office supply stores offer a nice variety of shredders that range from $20 and up.  Although there are a few shredders that are designed for business use and much more expensive, a general shredder with cross-cut capabilities can do the job.

The difference between a strip-cut shredder and a crosscut shredder is that a strip cut shredder shreds paper into strips. And, depending on the width of the cut strips, the information may still be obtained by the identity thief. A crosscut shredder, on the other hand, cuts the paper in different directions, thereby providing more security. The only other difference in price usually comes down to the number of pieces of paper the machine can take at one time and the size of the shredder’s motor.

The sheer number of online security breaches and sophisticated computer hackers has left many consumers weary about making online purchases. Although the only way to ensure safety from online hackers is to completely eliminate making online purchases, there are a few things you can do to greatly reduce the chances that you will become the next victim of online credit card theft:

• Ask your bank if you are able to create a “disposable” credit card number.  Consider ShopSafe, through Bank of America, for example. If you have a Bank of America Visa or MasterCard credit card, you can simply sign into your Bank of America account online and follow the ShopSafe prompts to sign up for a temporary, 16-digit credit card number, which can then be used to make an online purchase. This temporary card number, which even comes with its own expiration date and security code, is valid at only one online vendor. Therefore, you must sign up for a new card number for each online purchase. However, if you frequent a certain online vendor, you can continue to use that same temporary credit card number.
• Consider using an online payment service, like PayPal or Google Checkout. These online payment services eliminate the need to provide online vendors with credit card numbers and other personal information, and instead allow you to sign into the service and make the purchase. In addition, they also offer protection against unauthorized purchases, provided you report the fraud within 60 days.
• Consider purchasing a prepaid credit card. If you really want to avoid entering your credit card information online, you may want to purchase a prepaid credit card. To activate one of these cards, simply load it with the desired amount of money. Then, every time you make a purchase, the purchase total is deducted from your account balance, like a debit card. Be careful, however, of the fees that are often associated with prepaid credit cards, as they can come with their share of sneaky fees, such as activation fees and “load” fees.

1. We do our banking from a public computer or through a Wi-Fi network. The only way to better protect your personal identity and account information is to bank from the privacy (and safety) of your home. Public networks and public Wi-Fi areas are a hot spot for identity thief activity, as it is much easier for them to gain access to a number of things (through key logging malware), such as account numbers, passwords and other personal information. So, the next time you’re sitting at your favorite coffee shop, leave your online banking and shopping tasks at home.
2. We use unfamiliar ATMs. Using a local ATM for which you are familiar protects you because you are familiar with what the ATM looks like and what the card reader looks like, thereby allowing you to spot anything out of place, such as a card skimmer. Using unfamiliar ATMs does not afford you this luxury, thereby setting you up for identity theft.
3. We pay our credit card bills without looking closely at the statement. There have been many studies that have shown that credit card customers pay for bogus charges all the time, simply because they can’t be bothered with taking the time to examine their credit card statements. In fact, some credit card thieves charge just a few dollars to your card because they know that, chances are, you won’t spot the charge.
4. We toss our receipts. Even if you look closely at your credit card statement each month, do you really remember the exact total of your purchases? Because most consumers don’t hang onto their credit card receipts long enough to compare them to their statement, the door is left wide open for credit card thieves.

What is Skimming?

Skimming is the process of placing a fake credit card reader over a legitimate one. It works like this: a credit card thief places the fraudulent device over a legitimate one, such as those found at retailers nationwide, and sits back while customer after customer swipes their card into the device. After a day or two, the thief then removes the skimming device and – voila – has hundreds, maybe even thousands, of credit card numbers.

The latest skimming fraud took place in Michaels Stores across the country, including two in Utah. The Irving, Texas-based company confirmed that their credit/debit card readers in several stores have been compromised by skimming devices. Although Michaels Stores claims that less than 90 pin pads were affected, the store has removed all devices – there’s more than 7,000 – from their stores due to what they call an “abundance of caution.”

How They do It

Many criminals have managed to carry off this scam by either distracting cashiers or posing as repairmen. Many times, thieves simply replace the legitimate card readers with processing machines embedded with skimmers.

Although avoiding this type of scam is close to impossible, particularly if the thief actually replaces the real card reader with a fraudulent one, many times the thieves place a small skimming device over the legitimate one, making identifying it a bit easier.

The best thing you can do to avoid falling victim to a skimming scam is to never use a card reader at a retailer or location at which you are not familiar; to not use an ATM machine at a location you are not familiar; and to never use a card reader that looks suspect.

Finally, it always pays to look closely at your credit card statement each month and your bank account each month if you use a debit card. Immediately reporting fraudulent activity is the best way to avoid a considerable amount of damage to your bank accounts or credit score.

Although most individuals who use your Wi-Fi network will use it simply for their own purposes, the fact of the matter is that there are individuals who can gain access to your personal information, such as your credit card information, through your Wi-Fi network. It is therefore very important to protect yourself on your personal Wi-Fi network.

Do you know how to protect your home Internet security so that your computer and your computer activity are protected?

• The first step when protecting yourself and your Internet safety (including credit card transactions on your computer) is setting up a password on your network. Simply by setting up a password you can discourage nearly every user from hijacking your Wi-Fi connection remotely.

Although setting up a password on your network varies slightly according to the type of router you have, the basic way to get yourself a password is to connect an Ethernet cable to your router so your computer can access the router’s Internal settings through an Internet browser.

• Although a password is the first (and most important step) in protecting your personal information, like credit card transactions, on your Wi-Fi network, there are a few other things you can do, like turning on your network’s MAC (media access control) address. Your MAC address is the physical number that was assigned to your Wi-Fi adaptor hardware in your computer. By accessing the internal settings of your router you can determine your computer’s MAC address and specify it to your router. This works because any MAC address that isn’t specified on your router will be denied access.
• Check your router’s internal firewall program. Most routers have internal firewall programs that can be enabled using the settings menu for your router. The firewall program, when enabled, essentially makes your Wi-Fi network more difficult to access from the outside. Although Windows has its own firewall program built in, many computer experts suggest you invest in a better one.

You don’t need to stand idly and helplessly by, however, as there are a number of things you can do to reduce the likelihood that 2011 will be the year your identity is stolen and your credit is ruined. Here’s what to do:

• One of the most common types of scams involves “phishing,” which is essentially thieves who fish for your confidential, personal information and credit card account information. Phishing works when a thief sends an email to you that appears to be an email from your credit card company or bank. These phishing emails usually are warnings that there is something wrong with your account; a problem that needs immediate attention.  The email will encourage you to click on a link that will supposedly take you to the institution’s website, but will instead take you to a phony website. The website will then encourage you to enter your personal information to verify your account. It is then that the thief captures your confidential information, which is then used to access your good credit.

Your best bet is to never, ever respond or open a warning email that claims to be from your bank or credit card company. If there are any problems with your account, you can be assured your institution won’t contact you through email. If in doubt, delete the email and immediately contact your bank or credit card company.

• Because many scam artists are quite good at what they do, they have been known to fool people using fake websites. Therefore, it is always best to type in the web address of your favorite websites instead of simply Googling them before making a credit card purchase. Also, be aware that all security safeguards are in place before making any credit card purchase or entering any personal information via the Internet. And never make any credit card purchases unless your anti-virus/firewall protection is up to date and active!

But how secure are public Wi-Fi connections, and can you really trust them to keep your personal information safe when shopping online with credit cards?

The bottom line is that public Wi-Fi connections just aren’t as secure as your home or office connection, and the ability of someone to hack into your computer by someone sharing the same public connection is quite good.

In fact, the only thing that is secured over public Wi-Fi connections is your log-in information. The problem, it seems, is that technology has been zooming along at lightning speed, and the security for that technology just isn’t keeping up.

Many of us love the convenience and practicability of using a public Wi-Fi connection and, luckily, there are a number of things you can do to better safeguard your personal information:

• If you work on public Wi-Fi networks frequently, consider using a mail website that encrypts your data. You can easily tell whether your mail is encrypted by looking for the closed padlock icon that is usually located to the right of the address.
• If you check your email, shop with credit cards, or surf the Web using your mobile device, make sure it is updated with all the latest security updates.
• Consider using virtual private networks, most commonly known as VPNs. VPNs encrypt all of the information that you send and receive online. Some employers have already begun implementing VPNs, so check with your employer about this option.
• Consider using paid Wi-Fi instead of free Wi-Fi. You can purchase a wireless card through any of the phone carriers. Your own private Wi-Fi access will provide a more secure connection, particularly if you work away from home on a regular basis.