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First, you must identify the potential exposures of your personal and financial information.
The identity thieves usually get your information by stealing your belongings such as wallets, purses, documents, statements, mails (Documents from financial and government institutions), shipping packages, trash, etc. In some cases, these thieves obtain your information from someone they know who has access to customer records in a business or public entity.
Ask yourself the potential targets for the identity thieves to access your personal and financial information.
Offline:
Items you would carry or use everyday
a. Government issued Identity Card, Driver License, Vehicle Registration card and Proof of Insurance
b. Cellphone, tablets, and other electronic devices with data storage capability
c. Credit Card, Debit Card, Checkbook
d. Car Keys, House Keys, Garage Door Remote Controller
Places of activities
a. Home, Dormitory, Hostel, Hotel
b. Workplace, Schools, Gym, Parks, Movie Theatre, Restaurant, Retail Stores
c. Automobiles, Cars, Buses, Trains, Subways, Airplanes
Other potential sources
a. Any Mails (with your name and address information at minimum)
b. Documents, Statements, and Advertisements by mail – Financial Institutions, Taxation Authorities, Employment-Related, Credit Offerings, Utility Services Providers, Real Property Titles, etc
c. Trash Bins, Junk Removals and Document Shredding Service Providers
Unexpected sources
a. People of whom you know for a long time, work with, are related to, and trust.
b. Door to Door Personnel Soliciting Businesses
c. Callers claim they are from government agency or reputable organization or company
Online:
Emails, Online accounts from Websites of Businesses or Public Entities, Social Media Platforms, Mobile Applications, Forums, Unsecure internet connection (Public free WIFI access).
It is time to put a plan together and take action!
As you can see from above, your identity information can be all over the place. (See the list in section 2 above) The goal is to eliminate, minimize, or separate (diversify) the exposures of your personal information as much as possible in everyday life. Here are some tips to help keep your personal information secure and safe.
a. Store important documents in multiple secured places or locations. Legal, tax, ownership and title, financial, and medical records are some of the examples of important personal documents. These records have most (if not all) of your important personal identity and financial information.
Legal Records
Birth Certificates
Passport
Social Security Card
Permanent Residence Card
Marriage Certificates
Divorce Decrees
Adoption Papers
Immigration Documents
Tax Records
Income Tax Return
W2 and 1099 forms
Ownership Records
Real Property Deeds
Mortgage Loan Documents and Statements
Vehicle Registrations and Certificate of Titles (Pink Slip)
Financial Records
Employment records
Paystubs
Bank Account Statements
Credit Card Account Statements
Investment Account Statements
Insurance Policies (Auto, Home, Health, Life)
Personal Checks
Credit cards
Retirement and Pension Plan Documents
Social Security Statements
Medical Records
Medical and Prescription History and Reports
Medical Insurance Plan Documents
Medical Bills
Other Records
Wills
Living Trust
Powers of Attorney
Although a residential home is generally a safe place, the important documents above should be kept in secure spaces inside the home such as a safe, file cabinets with locks, etc. A safe deposit box at the bank is another good option especially for documents that are difficult to reproduce or replace.
b. Carry only necessary personal identity and financial items when you leave home
1. Identification Card or Driver License (for driving)
2. Car Keys (for driving), House keys
3. Cellphone, smartphone
4. Debit Card
5. Credit Card
6. Cash
7. Other personal items
Besides cash and other personal items, an identity thief can obtain your identity and financial information from the items 1 – 5 above in the event you lost your bags or wallets. Depending on the purpose of the trip, you may not need to carry every item on the list above. The fewer identity documents you carry, the fewer opportunities you offer to the perpetrator. If you have to carry all the items, you may consider separating them or hiding them in different places. For example, keep your ID in your mobile phone case or sleeve (the one with the card holder or pocket) instead of your wallet.
c. Never leave your Car Certificate of Title, Vehicle Registration card, auto insurance card, garage door remote controller inside your car.
A vehicle is vulnerable to thieves and car burglars anytime outside the home parking garage due to potential vandalism, break-in, smash and grab, etc. Basic security rule of thumb – Never leave any personal belongings, documents (with personal and financial information), valuable items inside the car. Ironically, most of us always keep the Vehicle Registration card, Auto Insurance card in the car as we may be required to produce that information in case of a car accident or when the police pull us over. Unfortunately, both Vehicle Registration card, Auto Insurance card display your personal information such as Name, Address, Policy number, Vehicle Identification number, etc. Car burglars not only can steal your personal information from those documents, but they also can go to your home, open the garage door with the controller, and burglarize your house.
You may ask how you would access the Vehicle Registration card and Auto Insurance card if you leave them at home? A common solution is to convert the documents in digital or electronic format such as pictures, images or portable document format (pdf) files and store them in your phone, so you can access them whenever you need. If you prefer to carry the actual paper format, you can keep the documents in your wallet or hide them in your car somewhere that is not easy to find. (For example: Underneath the carpet or some secret spaces inside the trunk of the vehicle such as spare tire compartment)
d. Ensure the delivery or transmission method of your personal and financial information is secure when you provide it to the intended recipient or receive it from the sender.
Imagine you send a personal check by mail to make payment for any services, or send your income tax return by mail to the tax authorities every year, or submit a mortgage loan application at the lender’s office or through its website, or receive your annual tax forms (with your personal sensitive information) in your unsecured mailbox. How many authorized and unauthorized parties would have access to your personal and financial information in those documents once they are in the hands of others? No one would have a precise answer especially when there are no security measures at the mailbox, locations, or systems. Good news is there are other ways to make payments, submit or receive notices, statements, letters, forms and applications of any kind without exposing your personal and financial information publicly. For example, you can easily pay someone for their products and services by electronic payments by using Zelle, Venmo, Paypal, Stripe, etc. Also, consider opting in for paperless statements from your bank, credit card company, mortgage company, insurance company and other financial institutions, utility or service providers, and government entities. Similarly, enrolling in direct deposit for paychecks, retirement checks or government benefits is safe and secure, and would eliminate the unauthorized physical access to your financial information. If you prefer to receive paper forms of payments or documents, first and foremost, secure your mailbox for incoming mail, and do not leave your outgoing mail unattended. Handing your outgoing mails to your postal carrier or dropping them off at the post office in-person would be a better option as your mails are not exposed to the public. A private mailbox service such as P.O Box at a local post office is an excellent option if you do not mind investing in protecting your personal and financial information. One should always add or purchase the certified and tracking options for important outgoing mails (Tax, legal, government, financial related) so you are able to trace the mail and receive the signature confirmation or acknowledgement from the recipients. In the digital world, you should never submit or send any personal and financial information over an unsecure medium such as email, text message, online public forum or chatroom, social media, etc. Upload or submit sensitive information only to a fully encrypted secured portal or system, or add a password protection to the documents with sensitive information when encryption feature is unavailable.
e. Eliminate (or at least minimize) the presence of your personal and financial information in the public. (Online and Offline)
Have you ever tried to enter a raffle ticket at the shopping mall with all your personal information for a chance to win a free VIP vacation package or a free luxury car? Or taking a survey for a free gift card online? How about a limited time offer of free e-book or service subscriptions of any kind? The goals of these marketing tactics are collecting your information and possibly sharing or selling it to others who might be eager to target you with their endless products and services promotions. Worst case scenario, potential perpetrators found some of your personal information circulating in the public or on the web (social media post or social networking website) and tried to gather your financial information via other ways (mails from your financial institutions in your unsecure mailbox), They then use that information to gain immediate benefits at your expenses. Example: Use your information to apply for new credit cards or retail store cards and use it to make substantial purchases and leave you with the bills with high balances and debts)
Consider the following to reduce the presence of your personal sensitive information:
1. Limit the sharing of your personal and financial information from a) companies and financial institutions you do business with (Reference: Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act(GLBA)), b) government entities that serve you (Reference: The Privacy Act of 1974)
2. Stop unsolicited offers by mail from credit card companies, retail stores, insurance companies. (Reference: Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)) You can visit Optout Prescreen website to exercise your right to Opt-out from receiving offers by mail.
3. Reduce the amount of promotional mail offers received from common mailings. You can visit DMA Choice website to register for marketing mails suspension service.
4. Reduce the amount of telemarketing calls. You can visit National Do Not Call website to register yourself on the National Do Not Call Registry.
5. Destroy, shred documents with your information before disposing. (expired credit cards, cancelled checks, utility bills, bank statements. Consider using certified on-site shredding service at your location with certification of destruction (COD) if you do not have time for the task or access to a shredder.
In reality, there are times you may find great offers that are very attractive, and well worth the risk of submitting some of your personal information. In that situation, you may want to provide as little information as possible, and use “spare” information you prepared specifically for marketing purposes. For example: Use a secondary disposable free email address or free internet communication service with a phone number to sign up for the freebies. If address is required, you can provide your mailing address such as PO Box or Private mailbox mentioned earlier.
f. Never give out or share your personal and financial information with anyone unless you have done your due diligence or initiate the communications.
This one seems obvious, as most of us were taught we should never talk to strangers, or tell anything about ourselves to anyone we never met. However, we learn about cases of identity fraud from the news or internet every day. The victims often were tricked by the fraudsters, and they provide their important sensitive information to the perpetrators voluntarily. You might have received text messages or emails from parties pretending they are from the tax authorities, financial institutions, courts, law enforcements, package delivery companies, and government agencies asking you to take certain actions (Send them money or give them your personal and financial information) or you may face legal actions or penalties of some sorts. Here are some common scams you should be aware of:
1. AI-powered scams including Phishing and Smishing, Deepfake videos and images, Fake websites, and Voice cloning
2. Imposter scams including Government or bank imposters, Romance scams, Grandparent scams, and Fake investigations
3. Investment and financial scams including Cryptocurrency scams, Account Takeover Fraud, and Check washing
4. Other scams including Tech support scams, Refund phishing, Employment scams, Emergency scams, and many more….
Scammers often exploit the human nature of the victims:
Courtesy: Being polite and helpful by answering questions or responding to inquiries are some of the natural behaviors of humans. Unfortunately, scammers often take advantage of the decency of the victims and ask (Verbal or Written forms) for their personal and financial information. Many of us do not realize that questioning is a very powerful act for the scammers to manipulate people and we often provide answers naturally and voluntarily.
Curiosity: An eye catching subject line from an incoming email, most of us may click to open the email without regard to the potential negative consequences. (Virus, Trojan Horse Malware, Ransomware attacks)
Empathy: Scammers are good at manipulating victims’ emotions, and always create scenarios that are very difficult for the victims to make rational decisions.
Greed: Unclaimed prizes, inheritance, properties, lottery or sweepstakes winnings are some of the baits scammers dangle in front of the victims. Sadly, some people fall for the trap and play into the hands of the scammers.
By understanding the tactics of the scammers, it would help you protect your information online and offline.
Before you interact with anyone who try to approach you, always remind yourself the following:
1. Do not answer any questions in any shape or form (in person, over the phone, email, text messages, online chat) from anyone, especially strangers. You should be the one to ask questions.
2. Only interact with the party if you are able to validate his or her true identity
3. Stop the interaction immediately if the party demands money or valuables (prizes, penalties, fines) or personal information (Name, Date of birth, social security number)
4. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!
Do your due diligence, and reach out for help!
Useful Identity Protection resources:
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Social Security Administration – Office of The Inspector General
Department of Financial Protection & Innovation
g. You have done your part, what is next? Make it more difficult for others attempted to access your personal and financial information
You understand the advice and information mentioned above, here are other improvements you can implement to enhance your personal identity information protection
1. Use long, strong, and unique passwords for your electronic devices and online account access.
2. Use multiple-factor authentications
3. Avoid using public unsecure WIFI networks and electronic devices (tablets and computers). Use Virtual Private Network (VPN) service whenever possible.
4. Never click on links or download files from senders or websites you do not recognize
5. Control users and devices accessibility on your home or business WIFI network. (If one of your users or devices is compromised, you do not want the intruder to be able to access the rest of the network)
6. Disconnect the WIFI connection whenever you no longer need to access the internet
7. Limit the information you share online
8. Update the software of your electronic devices when available
9. Use anti-virus software and anti-malware software
10. Use multiple email addresses or mobile phone numbers to handle your business. (Personal, finances, online shoppings, services, work related, school, etc)
11. Sign up for free fraud alerts or credit freeze services from the credit bureaus
12. Sign up for the IRS Identity Protection PIN
13. Consider lowering your credit limit of your credit cards
14. Minimize your online activity in general