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Mr. Danny Lents |
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"How can someone steal your identity? By co-opting your name, Social Security number, credit card number,
or some other piece of your personal information for their own use. In short, identity theft occurs when someone
appropriates your personal information without your knowledge to commit fraud or theft.
"Here are some ways that identity thieves work:
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They open a new credit card account, using
your name, date of birth, and Social Security number. When they use the credit card and
don’t pay the bills, the delinquent account is reported on your
credit report. |
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They call your credit card issuer and, pretending to be
you, change the mailing address on your credit card account. Then, your imposter runs up charges
on your account. Because your bills are being sent to the new address, you may not immediately
realize there's a problem.
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They establish cellular phone service in your name. |
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They open a bank account in your name and write bad checks
on that account." |
| - From the FTC site http://www.consumer.gov/idtheft/ |
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At a BMC luncheon, Mr. Danny Lents spoke on his experiences
with Identity Theft, what you can do to minimize the threat, and what to do if someone steals your identity. He passed out
the book ID Theft: When Bad Things Happen To Your Good Name, which is
published by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
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A copy of the book is available by clicking
 here.
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| By the way, the FTC has posted the following warning: |
| CONSUMER ALERT! |
Internet Account Updates
If you receive an e-mail request that appears to be from your Internet Service Provider (ISP)
stating that your "account information needs to be updated" or that "the credit card you signed up with is invalid or expired
and the information needs to be reentered to keep your account active," do not respond without checking with your ISP first.
According to information received by the FTC, THIS MAY BE A SCAM.
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| Forewarned is forearmed! Don't be the next ID Theft victim! |
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