Keeping Social Security cards at home, getting a locked mailbox and being careful what you share on social media are a few easy ways to help better protect yourself from identity theft.
Leave your Social Security card, and any credit cards that you don't use on a regular basis, at home. Keep important documents, as well as birth certificates, immigration documents; insurance policy information, and bank account information in a fireproof lockbox or another secure location.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) online at IdentityTheft.gov or call 1-877-438-4338. The three major credit reporting agencies. Ask them to place fraud alerts and a credit freeze on your accounts. The fraud department at your credit card issuers, bank, and other places where you have accounts.
Contact your bank or financial institution immediately if you suspect an account has been fraudulently opened in your name. Ask them information about the account and explain that you suspect you may be a victim of fraud. Ask your bank or credit card issuer to either close or freeze the account.
Change the passwords, pin numbers, and log in information for all of your potentially affected accounts, including your email accounts, and any accounts that use the same password, pin, or log in information. Contact your police department, report the crime and obtain a police report.
It's not the same as a scammer obtaining your credit card digits. No one will be able to withdraw money from your personal bank account if all they have is your account number.
But if scammers gain access to your bank account number, they can use it for fraudulent ACH transfers or payments. For example, scammers could use your bank account details to buy products online. Or worse, they could trick you into sending them money that you'll never be able to get back.
Many credit card companies and banks have customer protection plans in place to ensure against identity theft or to recover funds from fraudulent purchases. Credit reporting companies and private insurers also offer fee-based identity theft protection plans, but their benefits seem to have mixed reviews.
Here are the most common dangers of identity theft: Fraudsters can open new accounts, credit cards, and loans in your name. You can lose your health care benefits (i.e., medical identity theft). Hackers can “own” your email and other accounts (account takeovers).
Do you know the biggest targets of identity theft? The answer may surprise you – while everyone should be aware of identity theft, children and the elderly are at an especially high risk of becoming victims.
Data breaches that expose your passwords and sensitive data. Data breaches are the leading causes of identity theft. As of October 2022, there were 1,291 data breaches with over 160 million victims [*]. Data breaches take place when hackers break into services that you use and steal your stored information.
To keep your information safe, we suggest only providing your BSB and account number to people you know and trust (such as family, friends or your employer etc.)
You can visit your bank and fill out a form with your account information and amount you want to take out and present it to a teller. Work with a bank teller. Let the teller know you don't have a card, and they can walk you through the bank's process of retrieving money from your account.
It's generally considered safe to give out your account number and sort code, but you should always use common sense and avoid sharing your bank details with people you don't know or expect payments from.
Physical Theft: examples of this would be dumpster diving, mail theft, skimming, change of address, reshipping, government records, identity consolidation. Technology-Based: examples of this are phishing, pharming, DNS Cache Poisoning, wardriving, spyware, malware and viruses.
Signs of identity theft
Unusual bills or charges that you don't recognise appear on your bank statement. Mail that you're expecting doesn't arrive. You get calls or texts about products and services you've never used.
Such data may include names and addresses, Social Security numbers, existing credit cards or bank account numbers or medical insurance card ID numbers. Information such as your name, address and Social Security number can then be used to open a bank account fraudulently.
Yes, this is possible. Identity theft was the number one reported type of fraud in 2020 [*], according to the FTC. When scammers gain access to your personal information by phishing, for example, they can do one or more of the following: Gain access to your bank account and spend or transfer all your money.
It's also possible hackers could use your email account to gain access to your bank account or credit card information, draining funds from an account, or racking up charges. They might even use your email and password to sign up for online sites and services, sticking you with monthly fees in the process.