{"id":385,"date":"2018-02-01T10:00:17","date_gmt":"2018-02-01T16:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lonely-dev.com\/netcredit\/?p=385"},"modified":"2025-10-22T11:59:25","modified_gmt":"2025-10-22T16:59:25","slug":"identity-theft-and-credit-protection-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.netcredit.com\/blog\/identity-theft-and-credit-protection-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"Identity Theft and Credit Protection Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"<section class=\"wpb-content-wrapper\"><p>[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]One of the fastest growing crimes in our technology-filled world is the crime of identity theft and the resulting credit fraud. In 2016, identify-theft-related fraud cost consumers over $744 million.<sup>1<\/sup><\/p>\n<p>Identity theft can take many different forms, and different types of personal information can become compromised. For example, many identity thieves typically look to illegally gather personally identifying information, such as legal name, address, social security number, date of birth and account numbers. From this information, thieves can then assume people\u2019s identities and apply for loans, credit cards and even conduct transactions, all without the true owners being aware of the situation. Identity theft complaints were the third most reported to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and increased by more than 47% from 2013 to 2015.<sup>1<\/sup><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2><strong>How Identity Thieves Find Your Information<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Identity thieves employ a number of different methods to obtain the personal identification information they need to commit fraud, including the following:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Phishing<\/strong><br \/>\nAlthough email filters have gotten better at spotting these scam emails, occasionally consumers still see emails that purport to be from a legitimate source, asking the consumer to supposedly verify personal records.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Hacking<\/strong><br \/>\nThe most publicized cases tend to be of internet hackers who break into the databases of businesses, organizations and government institutions and illegally download personal information.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Dumpster Diving<\/strong><br \/>\nOther thieves get really dirty by going through the trash of businesses and consumers in search of personal data that should have been shredded.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Spyware<\/strong><br \/>\nThese malware and virus programs record keystrokes and financial information that are then sent to the identity thieves via the web.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><strong>How to Protect Yourself Against Identity Theft<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>One of the ways that consumers can protect their identities is by simply being alert for suspicious activity on their accounts, unwanted calls or inquiries about their credit. Thieves depend on consumer complacency to succeed. Just as burglars are always looking for unlocked windows, identity thieves are looking for individuals who fail to properly secure documents that contain their personal information or do not take precautions with their credit.<\/p>\n<p>An effective strategy for consumers looking to protect themselves is to simply be warier whenever someone asks for personal information. Some institutions have legitimate reasons to ask for your personal information but many don\u2019t need it.<\/p>\n<p>Below are online resources that can help consumers avoid becoming the victims of identity theft and credit fraud:<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>What Is Identity theft?<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.justice.gov\/criminal\/fraud\/websites\/idtheft.html\">Identity theft and Identity Fraud<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 Informative page from the Department of Justice explaining what ID theft is.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ssa.gov\/pubs\/EN-05-10064.pdf\">Social Security Number<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 Information from the Social Security Administration with help on what to do if you believe your number is stolen.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/topics.nytimes.com\/your-money\/credit\/identity-theft\/index.html\">NY Times Information<\/a> \u2014 Helpful collection of information on various parts of Identity theft.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Types of Identity Theft<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.lifelock.com\/education\/types-identity-theft-2\/\">Identity Theft Types<\/a> \u2014 Information on the different types of both online and offline theft.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Detecting Identity Theft<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.consumer.ftc.gov\/features\/feature-0014-identity-theft\">Theft Detection<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 FTC page which provides consumers with useful information on detecting Identity theft.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Identity Theft Prevention<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.ncdoj.gov\/Protect-Yourself\/2-4-3-Protect-Your-Identity.aspx\">Protect Your Identity<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 Informative page from the North Carolina Department of Justice providing help in protecting identities.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/nextavenue\/2016\/09\/14\/identity-theft-how-to-protect-yourself-or-resolve-it\/#3203eaf033b4\">Stop Theft<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 Information on how to stop ID Theft from occurring.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Reporting Identity Theft<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cashnetusa.com\/blog\/how-to-dispute-your-credit-report\/\">Creating a Report<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 Helpful page which provides the steps to take to report an identity theft crime.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.identitytheft.gov\/#what-to-do-right-away\">Tips for Recovering From Identity Theft<\/a> \u2014 How to report what happened, get a recovery plan and take that plan into action.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.usa.gov\/topics\/money\/identity-theft\/prevention.shtml\">Preventing and Reporting<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 Resourceful page that lists information on ID Theft prevention and reporting.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.consumer.ftc.gov\/articles\/0271-signs-identity-theft\">What to Do<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 Information from the FTC on the warning signs of identity theft and what to do in the event of being a victim.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=&#8221;11445&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Resources<\/p>\n<p><sup>1<\/sup>Insurance Information Institute. (August 05, 2016). <em>Facts + statistics: Identify theft and cybercrime<\/em>. Retrieved January 16, 2018, from http:\/\/content.time.com\/time\/specials\/packages\/article\/0,28804,1914560_1914558_1914544,00.html[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/section>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>One of the fastest growing crimes in our technology-filled world is the crime of identity theft and the resulting credit fraud. In 2016, identify-theft-related fraud cost consumers over $744 million.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":11447,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[623,626],"tags":[312,311,6,313],"class_list":["post-385","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-credit-health","category-improving-finances","tag-credit-theft","tag-identity-theft","tag-infographic-2","tag-online-safety"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","pp_post_mime_type":"publish","yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Identity Theft and Credit Protection Guide - NetCredit Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"One of the fastest growing crimes in our technology-filled world is the crime of identity theft and the resulting credit fraud. 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