I grant that this is not necessarily a “homeschool” topic, but I was astounded to read this recent CNN article and felt compelled to spread the word and, where possible, share some helpful tips with those who may need them. 

For those of you that have not read the article yet, eleven people were indicted recently in what is being called the largest hacking case on record.  The perpetrators allegedly stole 40 million credit card numbers from nine major U.S. retailers, including some well-known names like Marshall’s and T.J. Maxx, BJ’s Wholesale Club, OfficeMax, Barnes & Noble and Sports Authority (I’d hate to be working in their public relations departments).  They accomplished this by using “sniffers” which allowed them to grab credit and debit card account numbers and PIN codes, which they used to encode the magnetic stripes on their own blank cards.  Of course, these sinister folks then used those “new” cards to withdraw funds at various ATMS.  According to the CNN report, they were able to withdraw “tens of thousands of dollars at a time”.  

Incredible! And a bit scary.  

Incidents like these should make you wonder just how protected you are from this kind of electronic crime.  The Federal Trade Commission estimates that as many as 9 million Americans have their identities stolen each year.   What steps have you taken to protect your family from identity theft?

While we cannot prove it, my wife and I strongly suspect that we were victims of these thieves.  A few months ago, I was checking my bank account online and noticed that $500 had mysteriously been withdrawn from an ATM located miles from where we live and in an area of town I rarely visit.   According to my online transaction history, my wife’s debit card was used to make this withdrawal.  So, after making sure that neither of us had actually made that withdrawal, I called the bank to voice our concern.  Our bank was very quick about returning the funds (less than a week) and they replaced the compromised debit card nearly as fast (go Wamu!).  As you can imagine, we’ve been very vigilant since.  

We now make regular use of Washington Mutual’s account alert feature to notify us via email of all but the smallest withdrawals from our banking accounts.   Yes, it can be annoying to receive frequent emails like this, but the trade off is that we can keep close tabs on our account activity and act quickly if there is an issue requiring our attention.  Thankfully, there has not been a repeat incident.  

We’ve also recently given LifeLock Identity Theft Services a try.  In a nutshell, LifeLock is a service that promises to request “fraud alerts” on your behalf with each of the 3 credit bureaus (Experian, TransUnion, Equifax).  Once a fraud alert is in place, you must to be contacted and authorize the opening of a line of credit. The thought is that this prevents anyone from stealing your credit identity to open a line of credit in your name.    They do this (and more) for about $10 per month per person (children can also be covered for a lesser rate).  Rather than detailing all the features and benefits of their services, I recommend that your investiate LifeLock’s features & benefits for yourself.  I think it is worth the time to do so.

Now, you may ask yourself, “Can I do all of the things that LifeLock does myself?”  Good question! Yes, I think you can.  

LifeLock compares their services to an oil change:  you can perform the necessary steps yourself, but do you really want to go through the hassle when there are companies that provide services that will do it for you quickly and (relatively) inexpensively?   

The homeschool community is a self-reliant and frugal bunch, so my guess is that many families with limited budgets may want to take the time to protect their family on their own and save a few dollars, but they just may not know where to start.

So, below is my quick list of a few things you can do and some sites you can visit to begin protecting yourself from identity theft:

• Monitor all your financial accounts regularly.  If routinely logging into each of your financial institution’s sites sounds like a bit of a pain, a free site like Mint.com may help you to keep track of all of your accounts in on place.
• Keep all your financial records organized and keep copies of your credit cards in a safe and secure place.
• Shred, burn or eat any financial records or receipts you don’t need to keep anymore.
• Never give out your SSN or other personal info unnecessarily online or on the phone.
• Don’t fall for email and online phishing attempts.  And if you don’t know what phishing is…
• Get informed.  Check out the  Federal Trade Commission Identity Theft Site and the Identity Theft Resource Center and bring yourself up to speed.
• Guard your PC with all necessary software protection.  Or, buy an Apple Macintosh.  (For more info, check out my other post “5 Reasons Homeschoolers Should Switch to Macs“.)
• Until thieves develop telepathic abilities, the safest place to keep your passwords and PINs is in your head.  If your memory isn’t what it used to be, keep them in hidden in locked safes or in encrypted computer files.  Whatever you do, don’t leave them out for all to see.
• Be smart about where you keep and leave your credit and debit cards.
• Use a service like Reputation Defender to ensure that your personal information is kept off the internet.
• Be mindful of where you use your cards. If a payment terminal looks like it has been tampered with, DO NOT USE IT.
• Use cash more often.
• Request a “fraud alert”* with each of the credit bureaus (get a copy of your credit report while you’re at it).  Here’s how to contact the credit bureaus:

Equifax  or call Equifax  at 1-800-525-6285

Experian or call Experian at 1-800-422-4879

TransUnion or call TransUnion at 1-800-916-8800

The sad reality of our lives today is that identity theft can and may happen to you some day.  I pray that it does not.  However, with a little knowledge and a few preventative steps, you’ll be far better off than the many who fall victim to this form of crime each year.

I hope this post was helpful.  I recognize that it is far from comprehensive. You should always do more homework on your own, especially when it coms to something as important as this.  

As always, please comment with any suggestions, tipsor stories that you may have.  I wish you and your families well.

*Note:  You must “renew” your fraud alert with each bureau every 90 days.  LifeLock commits this for you for the duration of your service agreement with them.

Tags: ftc, homeschool, identity protection, lifelock, news, savings