While I knew identity (ID) theft could happen to me, I always believed that my odds of becoming a victim were small; after all, helping businesses and consumers protect themselves from ID theft is my business. When both my wife and I became victims of ID theft on three separate occasions in the last three years, however, I came to the conclusion that our personal information and the information of every consumer is not as secure as we may think.
Identity theft has become so lucrative that criminals are now focused on obtaining complete files of personal information from businesses like your current and former employers, colleges and universities, cell phone companies, and home and auto insurance companies. Criminals use both low tech and high tech means of stealing confidential employee and customer data that can negatively impact your credit, your job, your insurance, your tax return, your medical information and more.
From social engineering to computer hacking, every company is vulnerable to thieves who are intent on obtaining its stored information. According to the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, since February 15, 2005, the employee and customer information (along with social security numbers) of over 320 companies and organizations totaling 93 million individuals has been compromised. The breached data has been “lost or stolen” from some of the most well known, technology driven organizations including; Time Warner, Verizon Communications, General Electric, Bank of America, and Duke University.
So what can you do to protect yourself when even these large corporations are struggling to secure their information? The advice that I always give to my clients, friends, family and coworkers is to be proactive. Start today by increasing your awareness of the latest scams and trends, living a low risk lifestyle by properly securing and destroying your personal information, and most importantly, protecting you and your family. Just as you would purchase a health club membership to improve your physical health or an AAA auto membership to protect yourself in the event your car breaks down, you can now sign up for an ID theft plan being offered by a number of ID theft providers to help protect your financial health and support your recovery in the event your identity is stolen.
Since most ID theft products and services are part of an emerging industry, you now have multiple options in choosing an identity theft related solution from both new and established providers. Most solutions offer plans that typically include credit monitoring, ID theft insurance reimbursement, and recovery services. However, all plans are not created equal. Some providers only offer a partial ID theft plan or an assisted ID theft service, while others will offer a fully managed, comprehensive ID theft program.
When choosing an ID theft program, you should consider a number of factors including; how long the ID theft provider has been in business, the ID theft provider’s financial strength, and the ID theft provider’s vendor relationships (i.e. insurance company, credit bureau, recovery advocate service, etc.) Also ask does the program include family fraud; does the program include children and up to what age (since five percent of ID theft affects children under the age of 18 years old); does the program include pre-existing, unknown ID theft events; does the program include domestic partners and self-employed individuals; does the program include ID theft events related to terrorism? These are all important questions to ask since many of the ID theft companies will exclude many of the items listed above.
The more you learn about the risk of being a victim of identity theft and about the numerous ID theft companies offering solutions, the better decision you’ll make when it comes time to choose the right ID theft program for you and your family.