Identity theft continues to be one of the fastest growing crimes in the United States, and has ranked as one of the top consumer concerns for the past several years. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has produced a multimedia presentation to help consumers protect themselves from identity theft. The presentation provides information on steps consumers should take to secure their computer and protect themselves from identity theft, as well as actions consumers should take if they become a victim of identity theft.

Don't Be an On-line Victim: How to Guard Against Internet Thieves and Electronic Scams

One common example involves con artists soliciting people who need Jobs to work part-time from home but the end result is that the new "employer" commits identity theft or check fraud. Another involves "mystery shopper" programs for which consumers are supposedly hired to report on their experience doing business at a retailer but instead lose money in a fake check scam.

You can protect yourself from these and other financial scams by being extremely skeptical of unsolicited offers that involve "updating" or "confirming" personal information or requirements that you send a payment or provide bank account information before receiving anything in return.

Also, walk away from any offer from a stranger that would involve a large check to be deposited into your account and instructions to wire any of that money back, perhaps to someone in another country. In this type of scam, victims may end up owing thousands of dollars to the financial institution that wired the money.

For more information, see our tips in the Winter 2008/2009 FDIC Consumer News at the FDIC.

Reprinted with permission from FDIC Consumer News

Notice
The information provided in this guide is presented in a non-technical way and is not intended to be a legal interpretation of the FDIC's laws and regulations on insurance coverage. For greater detail concerning the technical aspects of insurance coverage, depositors or their counsel may wish to consult the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (12 U.S.C.1811 et seq.) and the FDIC's regulations relating to insurance coverage (12 C.F.R. Part 330).

Federal law expressly limits the amount of insurance the FDIC can pay to depositors and no representation made by any person can increase that coverage.

Identity Theft: Things You Should Know

1. Use passwords on all accounts and your PC that are difficult to guess...don't use the same password for everything.

2. Don't use passwords that relate to family names, birth dates, your SSN, addresses or your job.

3. Change your passwords frequently.

4. Do not keep passwords on your person and don't write them on your debit/ATM Cards, or on notes attached to your computer or desk.

5. Be careful what you throw in the trash, such as bills, canceled checks, account statements, marketing solicitations etc.

6. Shred or tear up your charge receipts, credit card solicitations, expired cards, statements, check, outdated documents and other sensitive personal information.

7. Carry only the identification and bank/credit cards you actually need.

8. Review your monthly statement promptly.

9. Secure confidential information at home.

10. Call your credit card company immediately if your new card has not arrived.

11. Destroy and cancel old, unwanted or unused credit cards. Cutting them up is not enough.

12. Don't give private information to anyone unless you are positive who the person is and that they have a legitimate need to know.

13. Never lend your password to anyone.

14. Guard your mail.

15. Be absolutely positive of the identity of anyone telephoning or e-mailing you to request personal information.

• Be especially cautious of anyone claiming to be a bank or law enforcement official.
• Arrange to call the person, using a phone number you can verify in the phone book.

16. Do not give out person data over the phone, through the mail or on the Internet unless you have initiated the contact.

17. Periodically check your credit report to see if there are loans or credit cards outstanding that you don't know about.

18. Never write down your PIN.

19. Guard your Social Security Number. Never carry it in your wallet or write it on checks.

20. Give your Social Security Number only when absolutely necessary.  Ask to use other identifiers.

21. Be careful of who is around you at ATMs. "Shoulder surfers" can get your PIN number and gain access to  your account.

22. Do not allow your credit card out of your sight when paying for products or services.

23. Do not leave your wallet/purse/checkbook in your car.

Online Security

1. Create secure passwords. Keep them private. Change them regularly.
The strongest passwords look like a random string of characters to attackers. Use a combination of letters, numbers and symbols.

2. Update your firewall, virus protection, and browser software regularly.
Use e-mail software with built-in spam filtering. Keep  filters current Don't open e-mails or attachments if you don't know the sender. Limit sharing e-mail or instant message addresses.

3. Do your online banking and shopping only deal with known, reputable vendors. Before doing business, look for and verify the company's physical address, not a Post Office box. Request a catalog by mail.  Speak with  a company representative over the phone.

4. Don't fall for phishing, mishing, vishing, or other social engineering schemes.

5. Back up all your valuable data and keep the backups under lock and key.
Back up anything you cannot replace easily. The following are some storage devices and locations to consider. External hard drive, CD, DVD, USB flash drive, Online backup and storage service

6. Eradicate personal data from your computer before donating or disposing of it. Remember, manually deleted computer files, may still be recovered by an identity thief. To  remove files, search for "file shredder" or "secure file deletion" to find a program that is compatible with your version of Windows and other software. Call the computer manufacturer's technical services department and ask how to delete personal files. A third option is to have reputable computer engineer safely overwrite your files from  your hard drive.

Many easy to read safety and security articles can be found at www.microsoft.com/protect