I was shocked to read that about 10 million Americans are victims of identity theft frauds and scams every year. These are the stats: 38 to 48% of the victims found out about the identity theft within three months after it has been committed, and 9 to 18% discover the theft only after four to five years, during which time the person who has assumed the false identity goes about living a life that is not his own. About 43% of the victims of identity theft believe that they know who the perpetrator is, and anywhere from 3 to 5,480 hours is spent every year on recovering and repairing the damage that has been caused by the identity theft.
I happened to read an article that detailed the ways in which one can prevent identity theft. Here they are:
· Never get rid of your receipts in public places, unless they have been shredded.
· Be careful when you are using your ATM; make sure you do not let another person stand too close to you: he may be recording your PIN with any of the new devices available freely in the market today.
· Even at home, do not leave your personal information, especially about your bank or your identification, lying around.
· When you make a purchase using your credit card, you must make sure that it is swiped only once. The reason? Fraudsters swipe the card twice: once to pay for the purchase, and another time, to record the information on the card.
Stay aware, stay safe.
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