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Get the FACTS about Credit Cards...

Here is what you need to know...
   to break free of Credit Card Karma:

Credit Card Theft...
Identity Theft:
   How It Happens

Every 79 seconds, someone's identity is stolen...
    Knowing how this happens... can help you to stop it...

* Identity Theft Trap - Steal My Purse:

Everyone thinks that the only way that thieves can steal your identity is to steal your identification, credit, or debit cards from your wallet or purse. This is not the most common approach.

Solution: This theft is done by amateurs. The real thieves are hard at work getting your information elsewhere. Yet, if you were robbed:

- immediately file a police report,
- immediately get a fraud alert placed on your credit file,
- change the locks on your home/car,
- check your credit report for fraud,
- cancel all effected credit cards and bank accounts,
- notify your bank, credit card company, the issuer of your driver's license of the theft.

* Identity Theft Trap - Raid My Mailbox:

If you receive sensitive financial information to an unsecured mailbox which is outdoors and unattended for long periods of time, you are asking for trouble. Thieves steal your mail, including your bank and credit card statements, pre-approved credit offers, new checks, and other sensitive financial data.

Solution: Rent a locked mailbox away from your home. You can get one for under $50 a year from your postal service. This theft is done by professionals who target nicer homes.

The money you spend on a mailbox will be cheaper than getting an attorney to deal with identity theft. This theft is done by professional thieves who work at raiding your mailbox as you work hard to earn your money.

* Identity Theft Trap - Dive Into My Dumpster:

Thieves rummage through the trash just looking for personal or business data... it is called "dumpster diving" and it is highly profitable because all the information they need to know is at their fingertips. With that data, thieves can pretend to be your mortgager-landlord, your employer, or someone else who may have a legitimate need for, and legal right to, the information.

Solution: Shred your trash thoroughly and throw parts of it out at different times. Pack the shreds inside old food boxers. If you have babies, stick it inside their dirty diapers.

* Identity Theft Trap - Get a Spy Inside:

Thieves clean up the homeless and pay to have them complete a "change of address form" at your local post office. Since no id is required for an address change it is easy to have your mail diverted to their address. They pay repair people to find personal information in your home. They bribe employees of companies you use to collect personal information from your files. Best of all, they just call up claiming to be from your card company and ask you to give out personal information as "part of their normal process!"

Solution: Never respond to an unsolicited email or phone call.

- If emailed, login to the official website and contact customer service online through secure forms.
- If phoned, say you will call back to the company's main number and ask to be transferred to the caller's extension because they called you at home.

* Identity Theft Trap - Scan My PC:

You can submit sensitive information securely across on the Internet.... but that data is not secure on your PC. Unless you have firewall that you are running at all times, hackers and crackers can remotely scan your PC and find your personal credit card numbers, bank account numbers, etc.

Solution: If you do not have firewall, anti-virus, and anti-spyware program, then you are just begging thieves to scan your PC and steal your personal information.

* Identity Theft Trap - Phish My Email:

"Phishers" send you an email that claims to be from a legitimate online business. The bolder ones will pretend to be from local, state, or federal governments... or even the police!

- The email looks official and warns that you need to "update" or "validate" your account information or you will be "suspended" or "terminated" or "reported to a credit bureau" if you do not respond.

- It may say that you did "not send a package" as promised and that you better do it or else you will be "reported" for fraud.

- It may say that they have a quick question and ask you to answer it... not by return email however...

All these emails contain a link to a website that looks just like the legitimate organization's site, but is not. You are then prompted to list sensitive, personal, financial information on an online form. This is common because it looks real, because people are trusting, and people do the work for the thief by filling out the form.

Solution: All legitimate online businesses tell you to login to their site and use their forms. This theft is done by professionals that you can help to catch by emailing "spoof@the-website's-URL.