Fraud Alert defined
Now the question comes- What is fraud alert? Fraud alerts are those red-flags installed to your credit reports, so that as soon as any probable fraud is detected involving your account you will be notified.

How does a fraud alert protect my credit
After the beginning the fraud alert, if anyone tries applying for a new credit card or try to take a bank loan, or any other activity falling in the credit category, you will be asked to confirm whether the request is authorized. To know more about the entire procedure relating to a fraud alert read on.

How do I place a fraud alert
Firstly, place a call to each of the credit bureaus for activating the fraud alert. It is recommended that you call using your cell phone, as this will insure a constant communication and the creditors can reach you anytime. There you request them to activate the fraud alert service and this will be done within the next 24 hours. Following, you will receive a confirmation mail about the successful activation. Additionally, for the protection of your account, services like credit and insurance offers that come in your junk mail, with be terminated for the next two years after you request fraud alert.

Be sure to renew every three months
The fraud alerts on your account will then be turned on for the next three months. It does not possess the nature of getting renewed by itself, so it will be turned into off mode automatically after the completion of three months. Furthermore, if you find yourself wanting to apply it for another three months, you will need to request the credit bureaus again for activation. Bear in mind that this needs to be done after every three months, so that the fraud alert remains flagged.

Credit protection services offer even more protection
If all this sounds like more than you want to tackle or keep up with, then you may wish to try one of the  protection services like TrustedID, Lifelock, or Debix- the three top rated identity protection companies. Being their clients, you not only gain advantage from the automatic renewal of fraud alerts, but you will also have the 24/7 monitoring services. They monitor individual credit reports, and notify of any dubious acts, as well as if unnatural activity is undergoing your account.

Fraud alerts do not protect all accounts
Fraud alerts definitely sound like an incredible idea, but wait there are a few cons involved.

Fraud alerts are solely applicable to new account, meaning that accounts opened before the fraud alert are unprotected. This also means that your bank information and other credit cards also need to be monitored.

While there are some negatives to renewing the fraud alerts every three months, a bad account may stay on your credit report for up to seven years.  Be sure to inform the credit bureau that you are placing the fraud alert for protection.  This will inform them that you are monitoring your credit situation.

The first factor to keep in mind when it comes passwords you are using online is to make sure you create effective passwords in the first instance.  In other words, you need to make certain that you craft passwords in the first instance that will do the job.  You need to make sure that passwords you create are appropriately complex to prevent easy cracking by someone intent on identity theft.

The next factor that you need to pay attention to when it comes to identity theft and passwords is to make sure that you do not actually store your passwords on your computer itself.  This is the case whether you use a desktop computer or a laptop.  The fact is that a person intent on identity theft (including people in the workplace) can lift password information off of your computer.

You do not want to use the same password for all of your accounts.  This is precisely what many people do, however.  If you take this approach and use the same password for everything you really are giving a person intent on committing identity theft the “key to the kingdom.”  By not using different passwords for all of your accounts you will permit a person intent on stealing your identity the ability to access all of your accounts easily.

Another factor to keep in mind in regard to password protection, identity theft and the Internet is to change your passwords with a considerable degree of regularity.  Of course, many people never bother to change their passwords.  However, you are best protected by changing your passwords with regularity in order to ensure that you are developing the best line of protection for these codes.

By paying attention to these factors you will be in best position to have effective passwords.  With effective passwords you will be able to better protect yourself against the threat of identity theft.  You will be able to use and access accounts online in a much safer and secure fashion.

One way on which many people fall victim to identity theft is through what is known in online parlance as “phising.”  With this understood, it is very important that you have a basic understanding of what phishing is all about.

The term phishing actually is derived from the word fishing.  And, the derivation actually is very illustrative.  In simple terms, when it comes to phishing and identity theft, a scoundrel actually uses the Internet as a means of “fishing” for your personal or financial information or both.

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An example of phishing as part of an identity theft scheme would involve the use of email.  A target would receive an email purporting to be from a bank or financial institution.  (There are many other types of phishing schemes; the banking one is merely being used as an example.)

Through this sort of phishing email scam, you will be asked to click on a link which will take you to a sham website – that very well may look quite like the real thing.  At such a site, you will be asked to input your personal or financial information for one reason or another.  In the alternative, the email itself may contain a form for you to fill out, to complete with your personal and financial information.  In the end, all you are doing is handing your personal and financial information to an identity thief on the proverbial Golden Platter.

There are also some other phishing techniques that are utilized in the furtherance of identity theft schemes.  Nonetheless, the tactics that have been set forth in this article really are the most common types of phishing being used to further identity theft schemes and scams in this day and age.  In the end, it is very important that you stay on guard for phishing when you are online.  By being alert and vigilent you will be able to reduce your risk of becoming the victim of identity theft.

It’s almost Valentine’s Day once again but before opening up that  E-Valentine’s Card, you may want to think again.  It may not be coming from cupid but instead from someone ready to spread the so called Storm Worm virus.

The Storm Worm virus have used the various holidays in the previous year to send out millions of emails and electronic cards such as Valentine’s E-Cards.  It is a malicious software (malware) and it does infect computer machines and made it become a part of of the Storm Worm botnet.  A botnet is a network of compromised machines but under the control of a single user.  Botnets are known to be to be set up to facilitate criminal activity such as phishing, spam emails, identity theft and other servcice attacks to spread malware to other computers online.  When a user clicks on the email link, he automatically downloaded the malware and his computer system is infected.

It is very important to be extra careful in opening up any e-card emails. Make sure that you know the sender before opening e-cards.  Do not open any unsolicited e-mail and if you accidentally opened them, never click on any links provided.

Identity thieves use items like your driver’s license or Social Security number to assume your identity. With just a few items of personal information, an experienced identity thief can open new bank accounts and write bad checks, get new credit card accounts in your name and not pay the bills, get a personal, car loan or cash advances, create cellular phones accounts or utility services and start running up bills, change your mailing address and charge on your existing credit card accounts, illegally obtain employment or rent an apartment but refuse to pay the lease until being evicted.

Who is at Risk of Identity Theft?

Everyone is really. But you create a bigger risk for yourself if you don’t dispose of, or are careless with, sensitive information like credit card numbers and bank accounts, birth certificates, Social Security numbers and driver’s licenses . The holy grail for identity thieves is your Social Security number, so make sure you guard it.

Use the need to know principle, if someone doesn’t need to know your Social Security number, or your driver’s license number, or any other details, then don’t give it to them. You should expect any employer, organization or individual whom you supply your details to do the same and respect your privacy.

Online threats are growing and range from issues like phishing to hidden code within Myspace pages. You should be very careful about forwarding your information across the web, especially when using wireless internet.

Who Are These Identity Thieves?

It could be anyone. Although about half of identity theft cases are attributed to family and friends of the victim. However, anyone who might have access to you personal matters or information could sell that information and place your identity and credit history in turmoil.

Identity Theft Laws

In a nutshell, anyone who uses another person’s name, or other details, and attempts to commit fraud using those details or person’s name is guilty of identity theft. There are also laws involving privacy that apply to employers- things like the shredding of old documents prior to disposal and proper safeguards during the use and storage of information.

In fact, an employee would have grounds to sue any employer if identity theft resulted as a consequence of improper management of information. There are also fines associated with this.

REAL ID is a contentious issue in America and will either help solve identity theft or make it easier, depending on who you are listening to. There is no question that identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in America and one which concerns many people.

As of 2004, the Identity Theft Penalty Enhancement Act commenced and promised hasher penalties for identity theft. It involves jail time for those who use identity theft to commit other crimes. The law also raised the standard for conduct of people employed in areas where sensitive documents are common.