Avoid falling prey to what are known as phishing scams, both over phone and through email. In a phishing scam, identity thieves pretend to be someone from your bank or credit institutions and simply ask you for your personal information. If someone contacts you and requests any personal information, don’t give it to them. A financial institution or large company will rarely use email to obtain this kind of information. In fact, your bank and your creditors already have your information from when you originally opened the account. Verify who is requesting the data and why, and then call the institution yourself. One extra phone call could save you a lot of trouble and money.
Remember, identity theft affects over 9 million people per year. Contact me to learn more about how to protect yourself from ALL types of identity theft.
