Check Your Credit Report Regularly

Check Your Credit Report Regularly


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Title

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Check Your Credit Report Regularly

Identity Theft & Your Credit Report

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Identity theft is a type of fraud in which financial

information is illegally obtained for the purpose of making

unauthorized purchases and transactions with credit cards or

funds from financial accounts. A thief can use your personal

information such as your name, drivers license, Social

Security number, health insurance, or bank account number,

to make purchases as if they were you. If this happens, it

could be the beginning of a financial disaster that could

linger for years and cause you to lose job opportunities, be

turned down for credit or loans, and in some cases, ruin

your reputation.

There are a lot of thing you can do to minimize the risk of

becoming a victim of identity theft. This article focuses on

obtaining and reviewing your credit report, quite similar to

what we do when we perform network security assessments,

believe it or not.

What Is A Credit Report

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There are three major credit bureaus that collect, maintain,

an distribute credit information about you. These companies

are Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax. Some of the

information you will find in your credit report is; personal

information such as your legal name, alias names, addresses,

current and previous employers, and date of birth; your

credit summary such as current and past credit status, total

number of open and closed accounts, the balances of

accounts, if they are current or delinquent; public record

information such as federal bankruptcy records, local

government court records, liens, judgments, and child

support records (information that can stay in your record

for up to 10 years); credit inquires - when you apply for a

credit card or loan, the institution will make an inquiry to

one or more of the credit bureaus; detailed account history

- very up to date information about your loan payments,

credit card debt and payment history, and this information

stays on your report indefinitely; credit score - a number

ranging from 330 to 830, the higher the number the better

your credit is and increases the chance of you obtaining a

loan or credit account.

Why Should You Check Your Credit Report Frequently

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If someone gets your Social Security number, it only takes a

few additional pieces of information, which is quite easily

obtained, to assume your identity. The Internet makes it

even easier than ever because most of this information the

criminal needs to get his hands on is out there. It is not

my purpose to scare anyone, but I must tell you that if you

think you are not at risk, you need to think again.

The most common forms of identity theft include; credit card

fraud, bank fraud, communications services, and fraudulent

loans. The bad thing is that this type of fraud can

negatively impact your life, the good thing is there are

ways of monitoring what other people do with your identity.

Do you know, that nearly all of the security assessments we

perform, we find personal and financial information on work

computers. What ever you do, do not store this kind

information at your workplace. This is a sure fire way of

becoming a victim of identity theft. If I had more room in

this article I could tell you stories about identity theft

and fraud that would make your hair stand on end. And,

everyone of us are potential victims.

Things You Can Do To Protect Yourself From Identity Theft

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I've written other articles about identity theft, and I am

sure I will write more. The bottom line is this is one of

the worst things that can happen to you financially, and the

risk of it happening is quite high. Some of the things you

can do to minimize this risk besides regularly checking and

monitoring your credit report is:

Shred all of those pre-approved credit cards you get in the

mail. This includes any document or item you receive that

contains your Social Security number, date of birth, or any

other personal identity information.

Never print your Social Security number, phone number, date

of birth, or credit card information on your checks. If a

merchant ask you for this information so they can write it

on your check, do not give it to them. Even if they tell you

you cannot make the purchase without it, go somewhere else.

Secure your mail and email. Did you know that a common

tactic for thieves is to divert your mail by filing a change

of address at the post office. Of course, there is the

typical method of just reaching into your mailbox and taking

checks, utility bills, and so on. Because people use email

as a substitute for snail-mail (normal paper mail), you

should be careful what you email to people as well.

Monitor your credit by obtaining a credit report from one of

the three, if not all three, credit bureaus. They may be

able to provide you with a consolidated report from all

three companies. And, most of them have inexpensive monthly

services that monitor your report for you and send you

alerts when things change or inquiries are made on your

account.

Conclusion

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As a consumer, you need to take this issue of fraud and

identity theft very seriously. Not only should this be

important to you, but if you have a family, you should see

it as an obligation to protect their future. As with any

type of security issue, there is nothing 100% secure.

However, you can take steps to minimize your risk and

exposure. Remember, it is typically the easy target

criminals focus their attention and efforts on.

Obtain your credit report and review it thoroughly, you

might be surprised by what you find. If you happen to see

something that is not right, take immediate steps to clear

it up.



About The Author

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Darren Miller is an Information Security Consultant with

over sixteen years experience. He has written many

technology & security articles, some of which have been

published in nationally circulated magazines & periodicals.

If you would like to contact Darren you can e-mail him at

Darren.Miller@ParaLogic.Net. If you would like to know

more about computer security please

visit us at http://www.defendingthenet.com.




Darren Miller