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A
column by
District 50 State Representative Gary
Moore
Minimize
Your Chances of Becoming
Victim of Identity Theft
Annually 10
Million People Have
Information Stolen
 Many of you have
commented on how much you
enjoyed the weekly
legislative reports given
during session. I would
like to take this
opportunity to thank
those newspapers which
have printed the weekly
reports, helping me to
keep you informed.
Now that session is over,
I thought it would be
appropriate for me to
continue to give you bits
of information that I
refer to as Moore
From The Hill.
Although this will not be
a weekly report, I intend
to give you information
monthly which I believe
will be beneficial. I
hope you will enjoy this
and find it useful.
With
this report, I would like to
discuss identity theft.
We’ve all heard
about it--when
unauthorized individuals
get your information such
as bank account number,
credit card information
or social security number
and use this information
to illegally obtain your
money or use your credit.
The federal government
estimates that close to
10 million people have
personal information
stolen annually. Many
times the victim must
spend time and money to
repair the damage done to
their credit status.
Below, I offer a few
suggestions to minimize
the chance of becoming a
victim of identity theft
and reduce the damage
done if you become a
victim.
1. Protect your social
security number. Provide
this number only when
absolutely necessary.
Always ask why it is
being requested and how
it will be used. Do not
carry your social
security card or number
in your wallet or purse.
2. Keep all important
documents, including
birth certificates and
passports in a secure,
locked location.
3. Shred all papers that
contain personal
information before
throwing in the trash. A
thief can easily sift
through your garbage and
get your data if it is
not shredded.
4. Protect your mail. If
you have a curbside
mailbox, don’t put
outgoing mail in the box,
and promptly remove
incoming mail.
5. Make sure you have
proper security software
on your personal computer
(firewall, virus
protection). Also, when
establishing on-line
accounts, many vendors
will ask a security
question for login. Do
not select an easy
question. Choose
passwords that are not
easy to guess. If your
system asks if you want
the computer to remember
your password, click no.
6. Review your bank and
credit card statements
promptly each month.
Report any charges or
withdrawals you did not
make or authorize.
Existing regulations
generally limit personal
liability in cases of
bank fraud or
unauthorized credit card
use, but may require the
theft to be reported
within a certain amount
of time. You may want to
check with your bank on
their time frame.
7. Check your credit
report periodically for
suspicious accounts.
United States residents
can receive a free copy
of their credit report
from any of the three
major credit bureaus once
every 12 months by going
online to
www.AnnualCreditReport.com
http://www.annualcreditreport.com/.
8. Do not accept credit
card or loan
solicitations in the
mail. Call 1-888-5-OPTOUT
to be removed from these
mailings. (These may be
used by identity thieves
to apply for credit in
your name).
If you become a victim of
identity theft, immediately call
the major credit bureaus
and ask that a fraud
alert be placed on your
credit report to prevent
any additional
unauthorized accounts
being opened in your
name.
Second, contact all
vendors with which you
have accounts and request
those accounts be closed
immediately. Follow up
your phone calls with
written requests sent via
certified mail with
return receipts
requested.
Third, file a complaint
with the relevant
government agency. In the
U.S., you may visit the Federal Trade
Commission website or call
the FTC Identity Theft
Hotline a 1-877-438-4338.
Finally, file a police
report.
Identity theft can cause
much stress and usually
requires significant
effort to undo the
resulting damage.
I hope this information
helps you avoid becoming
a victim of identity
theft. As always, please
let me know if I may ever
assist you.
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Contact
Representative Gary Moore
Phone 615-741-4317
Email rep.gary.moore@legislature.state.tn.us
--July 17, 2007
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