Protect Your Family's Identity

The fastest growing crime in the U.S. is identity theft. It is easy to see why with the increased access to content, games and services available to consumers using their computers, smartphones, tablets and even TVs. The more we surf the web, email, buy and use services electronically, the more vulnerable we are to becoming victims of identity theft. Here are some simple things you can do to safely use all that technology has to offer:

• Make sure your computer (operating system, anti-virus software and browsers) are up-to-date
• Freeze your credit report - by putting a freeze on your credit report you prevent potential creditors or anyone else from accessing your credit history and consequently issuing new lines of credit. This can be free if you have been a victim.
• Use secure passwords - make it hard for anyone to guess your password. Use different passwords for each site, don’t make it easy to gain access to multiple accounts by using the same password twice. No wife or husband’s name, birthdays, or the last four digits of your social security number. Secure passwords have a combination of letters, numbers and special characters (e.g., "#", "?", "!", etc.). 
• Never disclose any information to anyone online without doing your research and knowing who they are. Best practice is to share as little personal information online as possible. Check reviews of unfamiliar websites prior to entering any personal information. This will allow you to see if others have reported issues. Other things to be on the watch for are personal information requests via email. I always use my gut feeling and if it doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t.
• When shopping online only shop on Web sites that offer a privacy policy. Understand how your personal information will be handled. Be sure to print out privacy policies, warranties, price guarantees and other important information.

Still don't feel safe, below is a link to a chart that compares leading Identity Theft Protection providers:

http://bit.ly/ayMfhu