Protect yourself from identity theft

By Elliott Greenblott
Fraud Watch
Identity Theft! According to numerous sources, it’s the number one category of scamming with the number of victims and financial losses on the rise. Identity theft involves two steps: accessing personal data, and data use to commit crimes. Identity theft criminals do not discriminate; everyone regardless of age, race, gender, or affluence is a target. Collection of personal information occurs in a variety of ways: publicly available data, data broker files, stolen (hacked) files, data breaches, and even the personal behavior of victims. With minimal effort anyone can scan the internet and pull up details on individuals (I used Microsoft Bing to search ME and was able to collect news articles related to my activities for the past several years). With knowledge of a person’s place of residence, it is relatively easy to determine if he or she owns property as well as the assessed value of the property. Data brokers, for a fee, provide ANYONE with information on anyone that includes addresses, contacts, criminal record reports, marital status, religion, social organization membership, and much more.

Data breaches at government agencies, medical providers, retailers, and service providers fill in the gaps by including credit card information, health records, personal income, and even Social Security and medical insurance or Medicare account numbers.

While many of the sources of information lie beyond the control of victims of identity theft, personal behavior on social media such as Facebook, “X” (formerly Twitter), InDeed, YouTube, TikTok provide the personal elements that enhance criminal ability to profile and target individuals. When examined in total, the conclusion becomes clear: personal privacy is an illusion.

According to data reviewed by the Federal Trade Commission, FBI, and AARP, someone’s identity is compromised every 2 seconds by data breaches or individual, targeted attacks. The reality: we need to assume that everyone’s identity has been compromised multiple times. By way of example, here is a partial list of major data breaches that occurred in just the first 9 months of 2023: Sony Entertainment, Tesla, Toyota, NextGen Healthcare, TJX (T.JMaxx, Home Goods, Marshalls), The American Bar Association, AT&T, Chick-fil-A, T-Mobile, PayPal. If you have done business with any of these companies, your information may have fallen repeatedly into the hands of criminals.

There is very little we can do to control what is obtained through data breaches. One approach is to limit personal exposure. Reduce the number of credit cards being used; more cards mean more opportunities for criminals. Utilize on-line, secure accounts and payment systems such as PayPal which do not automatically link to credit card or bank account numbers. Another protective step is to opt to receive financial and credit card statements electronically and, if that is too big a step, purchase or share a document shredder for proper destruction of paperwork that bears account numbers and personal data.

There are a couple additional steps to take in protecting personal data. Be guarded in what information you decide to share. Consider what details you provide when purchasing a product and completing a warranty registration. While it is reasonable for a request for contact information and product details, manufacturers have historically asked consumers to note gender, age, race, income, and even personal preferences in travel and activities for the primary purpose of marketing additional merchandise. Some will even “sweeten the pot” by including registration for special deals or even entry in a prize lottery. Completing a warranty card is not necessary to protect your purchase; a sales receipt with the product details is all that is needed to obtain service, though partial completion of the form will allow for efficient notice of any recalls.

Finally, be discreet in terms of what you post in social media. Access to these accounts is relatively easy and what you post can be used to profile and target you and others: family news, medical conditions, employment record, education, entertainment and travel preferences. When you post on social media, you are sharing your life with a world of strangers.

Questions/Comments? Email [email protected].

— Elliott Greenblott is a retired educator and coordinator of the AARP Vermont Fraud Watch Network. He hosts a CATV program, Mr. Scammer, distributed by GNAT-TV in Sunderland, VT — www.gnat-tv.org.