How do you protect yourself from becoming a victim of identity theft? A credit card statement with gas charges originating in Louisiana was the first sign of trouble. The owner of the card had not traveled to Louisiana during the dates of the charges, which indicated there was a problem. The feeling of anxiety and frustration took over because security was in place to prevent fraud. There are many ways thieves can access one’s personal information. According to CIPPIC, ID thieves may steal personal and private information in various ways, ranging from simple (physical) ways such as theft of wallets to very sophisticated methods (technology-based thefts) such as computer hacking (Hedayati, 2012). The credit card holder did not have a balance on that particular card and the new charges as cause for an investigation. Upon calling the credit card company, many questions regarding the location and use of the credit was asked, but there had been no authorized use by the card holder. The credit card is regularly used at one department store for clothes purchases. The credit card is not used for gas purchases or online purchases. An affidavit was completed and a police report provided indicating the theft. This was the only way to shift the burden of proof to the thieves and not be responsible for the unauthorized charges.
People should always check their credit report more than once a year to prevent thieves from opening accounts in their name. When inquiring about fraudulent accounts, be careful not to give too much information to different agencies. The only agency you should give personal information is to the police department and the bank and that would be to obtain a police report. A solution involves the process of the credit card holder creating a 24- hour pin number. The pin is good for only 24 hours and after that time the credit card holder must create another pin if they wish to use their credit card. Therefore, if their
References: Community Bank of Tri County: Exceeding Expectations. (2013, January). Identity Theft. Retrieved from http://An analysis of identity theft: Motives, related frauds, techniques and prevention Hedayati, A. (2012, January). An analysis of identity theft: Motives, related frauds, techniques and prevention. Journal of Law and Conflict Resolution, 4(1), 1-12. doi:10.5897/JLCR11.044 Ruggiero, V. (2009). The Art of Thinking: A Guide to Critical and Creative Thought (9th ed.). New York, NY: Longman.