Whose Hand is in Your Pocket

by Dale Collie

Published on this site: April 25th, 2005 - See more articles from this month...

It's time to stop talking about identity theft and do something to protect yourself.

My bank just sent a new set of Visa cards with the explanation that hackers had compromised a retailer where I had used the card, ergo - new cards.

Doesn't sound too bad, does it? What it means is that I now have to contact all of my "automatic" payment vendors and give them the new number. We were lucky that we didn't get any financial damage on the way through.

A close relative told me this week about her experience in trying to clean up behind an identity thief who tried to open several different cell phone accounts and some other monkey business.

A attorney friend tells me it took him almost eight years to clean up after someone stole his identity and wrecked his credit.

How does this ID theft work? Bad guys get your name, social security number, or credit card number and start charging purchases or opening lines of credit.

Some of these thieves get info from your mail box, but there are easier ways for the more sophisticated. Phishing is on the rise, and this isn't the kind of fishing where you use a rod and reel. Instead, these illigitimate Phishers lure unsuspecting email recipients into giving up their personal info by making them think you're working with a bona fide agent of a company with whom they normally do business.

"Pretexting" is just as phony as thieves pretend to conduct surveys or other seemingly official reasons to get information from you.

My e-mail brings me five or more phishing lures every day - eBay, CitiBank, utility companies, and so on. I also receive more than twenty emails every day telling me of some joker in Nigeria or Netherlands who has come into millions of dollars that they'll share with me if I send them my bank account information to help them smuggle this cash out of their country.

The sad part is that some people bite these lures and lose a lot. A young friend from Eastern Europe recently asked me if such an offer was for real!

Typically, the thieves collecting the information are not the ones who use it. Your personal information is often sold to others who are expert in hiding their trail after wrecking your finances. It's hard to tell whose hand is in your pocket and who's spending your money.

Here are some stats on this subject from CFO-IT magazine:

ID Theft by Fraud Type

32% - Credit-card Fraud
19% - Phone or utilities
17% - Bank
11% - Employment-related
8% - Gov'mt documents or benefits
5% - Loan
19% - Other

What are we going to do about all of this fraud?

We already have some stiff laws on the books, but only the biggest of criminals are going to be tracked down across international borders. About the only way the law can protect us is to establish secrecy requirements for retailers and others who use our credit card numbers.

Several agencies have discontinued using social security numbers as identifiers. Be sure to challenge the necessity of giving this information to anyone.

Some people espouse using cash only. They say to throw away those ATM cards and check books. Don't do business with anyone who won't take cash. The rub is that some companies don't even know how to deal with cash any longer. Have you tried to rent a car or check in a hotel with cash only?

One recent article told of German grocers installing equipment to read your finger prints to activate charge accounts. Don't leave home
without your prints!

The FTC web site advises the following steps to avoid credit card identity theft:

1. Sign your cards as soon as they arrive. Others advise us to write "Picture ID Required" on the back of our cards instead of signing them to prevent a thief from knowing just how we sign our name.
   
   
2. Carry your cards separately from your wallet, in a zippered compartment, a business card holder, or another small pouch.
   
   
3. Keep a record of your account numbers, their expiration dates, and the phone number and address of each company in a secure place.
   
   
4. Keep an eye on your card during the transaction, and get it back as quickly as possible.
   
   
5. Void incorrect receipts.
   
   
6. Destroy carbons.
   
   
7. Save receipts to compare with billing statements.
   
   
8. Open bills promptly and reconcile accounts monthly, just as you would your checking account.
   
   
9. Report any questionable charges promptly and in writing to the card issuer.
   
   
10. Notify card companies in advance of a change in address.

How do we know that our identity has been compromised?

Check your credit report at least annually. Many people recommend checking quarterly. You can pay the credit reporting companies a fee and get your reports anytime you want.

However, the FTC advises us to "order a free annual report from one or all the national consumer reporting companies by visiting www.annualcreditreport.com.

Or you can call toll-free 877-322-8228, or complete the Annual Credit Report Request Form and mail it to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281.

You can print the request form from www.ftc.gov/credit.

The credit reporting companies only send free reports requested through the Report Request Service.

The FTC gives a lot more information on their site. Go to
http://www.consumer.gov/idtheft/recovering_idt.html#9 to find out things such as:

What to do if someone steals your identity? How do you prove you're a victim of identity theft? When should I provide my social security number? Should I buy identity theft insurance? How do I get money back that was stolen through electronic transfers, e.g. debit cards, credit cards?

Answers to these questions and more than 50 others are given at the link above. You can get the forms you need to initiate your claim of identity theft at this site, and the FTC has more than 25 publications on this subject that are free for the asking.

Here's the bottom line. As always, people are trying to get your money. In the past, thieves had to corner you and get the money out of your pocket. Today, your pockets are much bigger, and it's much easier to reach in.

If you don't take action to prevent the theft, you're basically inviting the thieves to take as much as they want - of course, they want it all!

Find out more about identity theft and other stressors at WWW.CourageBuilders.com

Dale Collie speaker, author, and former US Army Ranger, corporate president, and professor at West Point. Selected by "Fast Company" as one of America's Fast 50 innovative leaders. Author of "Frontline Leadership: From War Room to Boardroom," and "Winning Under Fire: Turn Stress into Success the US Army Way" (McGraw-Hill) http://www.couragebuilders.com