As identity theft and other crimes related to the online world continue to be committed, you should be keeping your identity and personal information as well guarded as possible. Especially with the social networking site Facebook in particular. Keep as much of your personal information hidden from view as possible.

You can set your own privacy levels, so it is a good idea to limit who can look at your profile. Set it so that your friends and family can have access, but make it invisible to everyone else. That way, you can review who wants to look at you, and then you can decide.

People on Facebook include their birthday on their profiles more often than not, and most of them don’t understand that a criminal can begin to put together a piece of the puzzle of who you are.

Your date of birth narrows down a lot of variables, and if you put your month and day and year down on your profile, then they can refine the process even more. Also, think about what password you use for your PIN because if it has your birthday in it, they can pretty easily figure out how to hack your account.

Next on the list of things to be aware of is listing your job in your visible profile. Can you imagine some stranger showing up at your work? Nobody needs to know that stuff about you until you get to know them, so be careful, and don’t post that.

Getting a cyber stalker is one of the most creepy things in the world, and you never want that to become a real world experience. Don’t reveal enough about yourself to give a maniac any kind of inroad to your life.

Another big way people can identify you is by what school you went to and what year you graduated. You don’t need to have that hanging out there either, and unless someone is really bored, nobody legit would even care.

Don’t be in a network on Facebook either. This is a big way that people can find out all sorts of things about you. The main thing in protecting yourself is to stay as anonymous as possible to strangers, and don’t give someone the chance to make your life miserable.

Get more tips created by this author about areas like stability ball chair and LCD TV brackets.

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Identity Theft: The Role Credit Protection Takes Posted By : Junior Sloan http://bit.ly/cLp0sV – by 8traze (tray)

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It could happen when you make a routine withdrawal from an ATM, respond to an e-mail asking for information about an online account, or leave a new box of checks unattended in your mailbox. Identity theft is one of the easiest crimes to commit in America-and one of the hardest to prosecute.

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Why you need to shred important documents to stop identity theft should be a no brainer really. If you are a company that deals with peoples personal details on a regular basis then you should already be doing it. If there is an identity theft because of your actions then you could be liable for any damage caused to that persons name.

You also have to take good care of disposing of your personal documentation or you could be in massive debt before your realize something has happened. With your details, loans and credit cards could be gained by a thief or worse could happen. They could actually apply for official documents in your name and then effectively live a double life committing crimes in your name.

Imagine you are just driving along one day and a police officer pulls your car over. Then he automatically runs a license check and it turns out that you’ve got warrants out in your name because your identity has been stolen. You will be arrested and taken to a police station at the very least. In the worst case scenario, you actually end up going to jail for something you haven’t done.

You may think this is a little absurd but when you look take a close look, it doesn’t seem that crazy. Imagine a court and the sort of people they deal with on a daily basis. If a criminally minded person was looking to escape justice then they may well have had an accomplice. What I mean is a clever criminal may provide their information for someone else to use in order for this eventuality. Some people have in the past sold their identity to criminal gangs.

It’s precisely because of this type of situation that a courtroom may not look upon your case with a sympathetic view. If someone else has sold your Identity on to a criminal gang then you could really be in trouble at some point. There are large groups of people that have focused their efforts on massive bank frauds. They may not be looking to use your name for banking, but they may want to traffic people from troubled areas of the world.

Your ID can be obtained in many ways but your garbage is the main source. It can start with just your name and address and move on to your account numbers. You could be targeted over a period of time where little bits of information is taken each time. A friend of mine had their new bank card stolen from their mail by a person at the mail depot.

The victim was told that their new card would be mailed the same day. They were asked to provide the four digit access number for their old card so they could release the new one. As the card was a replacement and not new then the number was the same and the thieves could use it for themselves.

When disposing of your personal information there are a few guidelines for you. Always use a good cross shredder for anything with your details on whether there is just one item of information or more. Even shred your name and address because if someone is targeting you then they may not know critical information. This could be how to spell certain names or even whether or not you have any middle names. The most reason why you need to shred important documents to stop identity theft is because you are responsible for your details nobody else.

Systematic use of a cross cut paper shredder can assist in the fight against identity theft. Implement a cross cut shredder to make your sensitive discarded papers unreadable to would be hackers and thieves.

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I have so much identity theft from a corrupt mortgage broker (most likely). I paid on two cards for at least six months, which was so stupid. In december, enough was enough and I stopped paying. I have finally started to take action. My attorney says that these can still be proven, but I see little hope. Anybody out there that works in this field? Freemason here.

I asked a question about closing accounts for credit score reasons and have been educated on that topic. My next question is if you have open accounts that you don’t use or if you have many open, does it raise your chances for identity theft? Also how do they get your information?

Where do I go to get identity theft protection?What does this do and is it worth the fees?

I have had so much trouble with identity theft the last few years. I have not been able to get a home or a car. I know there has to be a way out there to get some of those older items deleted isn’t there?

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Identity theft today is a big threat for all of us. We do not dare leave any important papers lying around, or throw anything to the trash that may have vital information on it. We have turned to shredders to destroy important information for us, so that we may feel safer about the things that we throw to the trash. Now is the time for you to discover the components that good cross cut paper shredders have.

Shredders were once only commonplace in office buildings, now they are commonplace in homes as well. So how do you decide what type of shredder you need for your everyday use, and which type to buy?

Shredders come in sizes from truck to scissors, to show the many variations in size. Strip cut shredders or scissor type shredders produce long thin strips. These are not as secure as other types. The pieces can be lined up and put back together.

Cross cut shredders use opposing rotating drums to cut the paper into different four-sided shapes, for example rectangles or diamond shapes. This is far better than the strip shredding described earlier. It makes it much more difficult to decipher any information from the remaining particles.

You will need to choose what size shredder you think you will need for your home use. If you will be shredding the majority of things that come into or leave your home, then you should purchase a reasonably sized cross cut shredder, especially if it will be the only one in use. Do not purchase one that you will only be able to feed one single sheet of paper at a time through. You may have to invest slightly more money, but you will be getting what you pay for.

There are a variety of great shredders available now for home use. You can shred all of your sensitive documents, but you can also shred things like your credit cards, and your CD/DVDs as well.

There are a few things that you need to look for when buying your new cross cut shredder. Check and see what type of blades it has. They should be steel, and they should be able to withstand staples and paperclips going through. It is a bonus if there is a shutoff to avoid overheating, because this may happen if you are running a lot of documents through. Medium security is what it should be classified as, for home use. Some vendors are offering really good warranty packages.

You should feel like you have a handle on identity theft now, because you are aware of the options. It will just take a little time to select the right machine for your families needs. Your privacy is important and a good shredder can help you keep your disposable documents more private. You will have an easier time shopping because you know the truth regarding the components that good cross cut paper shredders have.

Because a crosscut shredder cuts in two directions, the resulting pieces are much smaller. Using a cross cut shredder makes it harder for a snoop to learn sensitive information from going through your trash.

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I am trying to write a paper about identity theft for a forensic accounting class but I’m stumped. Can someone out there give me some examples for sources of where I can go to find this information, how identity theft relates to forensic accounting or what forensic accountants do in cases involving identity theft?

thank you!