Identity Theft and Phishing: What You Need to Know

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• Identity Theft and Phishing What You Need to Know

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Take the Identity Theft Quiz
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What is Identity Theft?

• Identity theft is a crime of stealing key pieces
  of someones identifying information, such as
• name,
• address,
• Social Security number,
• birth date, and
• mothers maiden name

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Common Forms of Identity Theft

• Credit card fraud
• Communications services fraud
• Bank fraud
• Fraudulent loans
• Internet fraud

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How Identity Theft Occurs

• Identity thieves
• steal wallets and purses containing your ID
• steal your mail
• complete false change of address forms
• rummage through trash (dumpster diving)
• pose fraudulently as someone else to get your
  information

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More Ways Identity Theft Occurs

• Identity thieves
• steal business or personnel records at your
  workplace.
• find personal info in your home.
• use info you put on the Internet.
• buy personal info from inside sources.
• shoulder surf at ATMs and telephones.

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How Identity ThievesUse Your Information

• Change mailing addresses on credit card accounts.
• Open new credit card accounts.
• Establish phone or wireless service in your name.
• Open new bank accounts and write bad checks.
• File for bankruptcy under your name.
• Counterfeit checks or debit cards.
• Buy and take out car loans in your name.

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Reducing the Risk of Identity Theft

• Destroy credit card applications, receipts, bank,
  and billing statements.
• Avoid giving your SSN unless its absolutely
  necessary -- use other identifiers.
• Pay attention to billing cycles.
• Guard your mail from theft.
• Put passwords on credit card, bank, and phone
  accounts.

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More Ways toReduce the Risk of Identity Theft

• Carry as little identification information as
  possible.
• Limit the number of credit cards you carry.
• Dont give personal identification on the phone
  unless you initiate the call.
• Be cautious with personal info in your home.
• Check on who has access to your personal info at
  work.

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Still More Ways toReduce the Risk of Identity
Theft

• Dont carry your SS card.
• Save ATM and credit card receipts to check
  against statements.
• Alert family members to dangers of pretexting.
• Be informed about your financial institutions
  policies of sharing information.
• Make sure your credit reports are accurate.

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How to Get Your Credit Reports

• 3 National Credit Reporting Agencies
• Equifax
• Experian
• Trans Union
• U.S. residents can receive one free credit report
  per year from each credit reporting agency
• www.annualcreditreport.com
• 877-322-8228

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If Youre a Victim...

• 1. Contact the fraud departments of the three
  major credit bureaus.
• 2. Contact creditors or financial institutions
  for any accounts that have been tampered with.
• 3. File a report with local police or police
  where the theft took place.

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The Emotional Impactof Identity Theft

• Embarrassment -- Feeling that you did
• something wrong
• Personality changes -- Feelings of
• paranoia and misplaced anger
• Powerlessness -- Persistence is key to
• undoing the damage
• Insecurity -- A distrust of everyone

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Overcoming The Emotional Impact of Identity Theft

• Get psychological counseling.
• Consider legal help.
• Network with other victims -- join or start a
  support group.
• Dont give in and pay what you dont owe.

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Technology Scams Phishing, Fraudulent E-mails,
etc.
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Look-Alike (Fake) Web Sites

• Spoof e-mail messages sent to verify or
  update account info
• Appears to come from reputable company
• Example eBay, Best Buy, banks, merchants
• Looks legitimate
• Scam is called phishing
• Get people to disclose sensitive data
• Data used to commit identity theft

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Red Flags of a Phishing Scam

• E-mails that direct users to a Web site to
  validate or update info
• E-mails warning accounts will be closed
• Grammatical errors and typos
• References to 9-11, the Patriot Act, etc.
• Return addresses at yahoo.com, juno.com
• Words Like Urgent and Important

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Steps To Avoid Phishing

• Be cautious African refugees with 10 million,
  suspended FDIC insurance, etc.
• Realize that banks never ask for account info,
  especially in an e-mail
• Dont click on any links in suspicious e-mails
• Report suspicious e-mails to companies
• D-E-L-E-T-E

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Newest Scam Medicare-Approved Drug Discount Cards

• Helpful callers or e-mails or door-to-door
  fraudsters offer to help seniors get a
  Medicare-approved drug discount card
• Fraudsters request SS for ID
• Victims personal info used for
• Identity theft crimes
• Medicare fraud crimes

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Recommended Technology Fraud Risk-Reduction
Practices

• NEVER click on unsolicited pop-up ads
• Avoid putting your e-mail address on public Web
  pages (can be harvested by spammers)
• Dont use good e-mail address in chat rooms
• Avoid short addresses like John101
• Keep virus software patches up to date
• Never forward chain letters virus warnings

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Interesting Fact

• 58 of e-mail messages in 2003 were spam

Source Kiplingers Personal Finance, March 2004
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ID Theft Study

• Purpose
• To understand what actions consumers are taking
  to reduce the risk of identity theft
• Data collected from an online self-assessment
  tool (sample bias)
• 20 questions 1 (never) to 5 (always)
• Higher score more frequent use of risk reduction
  practices
• Data from 287 respondents in 2003

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Web Site Address For The Online Identity Theft
Quiz
www.rce.rutgers.edu/money/identitytheft/default.as
p
The online quiz provides both personalized
feedback to users and a database for ongoing
research
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Findings

• Mean scores range from 2.1 to 4.4
• Three least frequently reported practices
• Checking credit report annually from 3 bureaus
• Post office box or locked mailbox-incoming mail
• Carrying SS card or ID card with SS number

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Checking Credit Reports

• Least frequently performed risk reduction
  practice (score of 2.1)
• Almost a third of sample were respondents from
  six states that mandated free reports
• CO, GA, MD, MA, NJ, and VT
• Two groups of respondents compared
• No difference found between groups
• Cost may not be a primary barrier

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Research Highlights

• Majority of sample used many risk reduction
  practices
• Indication of consciousness-raising
• From government and non-profit agency info
• From media reports about identity theft
• From knowing a crime victim (1 in 50 people)
• Not giving out SS and bank account and having
  mail held most frequently done

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Summary

• Minimize the amount of information that can be
  stolen from you.
• Reduce the amount of personal information out
  there.
• Identity theft is a crime that must be reported.
• Act immediately to stop further use of your
  identity.