Experts offer tips aimed at preventing identity theft

In today's world of technology, area residents may need to take measures to make sure that their identities remain solely theirs own.

According to a pamphlet provided by the Federal Trade Commission, Identity theft can cause the lives of its victims to be negatively impacted.

"Identity theft is a serious crime. It occurs when your personal information is stolen and used without your knowledge to commit fraud or other crimes. Identity theft can cost you time and money. It can destroy your credit and ruin your name," the written information said.

In further explanation, Kansas Insurance Commis-sioner Sandy Praeger said in a statement on the Web site www.ksinsurance.org, that identity theft occurs when a person's personal information, such as social security number or date of birth, is used unlawfully to commit fraud.

According to the written information provided by Praeger, residents can take steps to avoid identity theft. It is recommended that people avoid carrying their Social Security numbers and driver's license numbers together in their wallets or purses.

The FTC information said that some thieves still prefer to operate the old-fashioned way by stealing wallets and purses. Not having both sets of numbers in one place will make it more difficult for a thief who chooses this method.

In addition, Praeger recommends that adults shred any pre-approved credit card offers as well as bills before discarding them in the trash.

The FTC pamphlet said that one way thieves manage to steal identities involves dumpster diving, which is when a thief rummages through trash looking for bills or any other paperwork which may have a person's personal information on it.

For this reason, Praeger's suggestion to shred all personal information before discarding is justifiable.

Consumers are also encouraged to be cautious when using their credit cards to make purchases or pay bills online. In addition, Praeger suggests that consumers check their credit reports on a regular basis to watch for unusual activity.

According to the FTC, there are several other ways that thieves can steal someone's identity. Skimming, which is stealing someone's credit or debit card numbers while processing someone's card, is one way that identity theft can occur.

Also, sometimes thieves pretend to represent a financial institution or company and ask a person to give out their personal information. This process is called phishing. Also, sometimes thieves fill out a change of address for a specific person, causing that person's billing statements to arrive at another location.

The FTC urges consumers to protect themselves by not giving out personal information over the phone; not clicking on links that are sent in unsolicited e-mails; not using obvious passwords such as birthdates, mother's last name or the last four numbers of one's Social Security number; and not keeping personal information in a non-secure place.

According to creditre-port.com, criminals are developing more creative ways to access personal and financial information. In Missouri, credit card fraud encompasses 27 percent of identity theft instances, according to information obtained from creditreport.com.

"Credit card fraud is when an ID thief uses someone else's lost or stolen credit cards or credit card information for his or her financial gain.

"Missouri credit card fraud criminals can access your credit cards by stealing your wallet, stealing your mail, finding a receipt with your credit card information or overhearing you on the phone giving out your credit card number. Missouri credit card fraud criminals will even get your credit card information by sending you a phony e-mail or by making a fraudulent phone call to your home or cell phone," the credit-report.com statement said.

According to the online information, in Kansas, 26 percent of Identity theft falls under the "other" category.

This category covers many areas.

"ID theft can show up at your doorstep in a number of forms. There are the standard methods, such as online 'phishing,' mail fraud, false documentation and so on. But ID thieves are constantly developing new and innovative ID theft tactics. One is called 'trashing' while others call it 'dumpster diving.' Criminals literally sort through the trash in order to find documentation that could lead to one's personal or financial information. There is another way ID thieves are accessing the information of innocent people across the country... Today it's called 'social engineering.' This is the art of social networking in order to achieve financial gain or social status," the creditreport.com information said, explaining that this type of theft could involve blackmail.

The online information said that in both Kansas and Missouri, consumers in the 18 to 29 age bracket are the most likely victims of identity theft. In fact, this is true for consumers in this age bracket throughout the United States as well. Consumers who are under the age of 18 or over the age of 60 are the least likely to fall prey to identity thieves, the creditreport.com information said.