BY SUSAN TOMPOR • FREE PRESS COLUMNIST • April 23, 2008
Retired teacher Donna St. John's hand shot up the minute the workshop instructor asked if anyone ever had his or her identity stolen.
St. John recalled the time several years ago that somebody tried to buy a refrigerator, washer and dryer with one phone call to Sears after opening a credit card in her name. The store caught it. But St. John, who used to teach at Sterling Heights High School, never forgot how quickly trouble could start.
About 50 people attended the two-hour identity theft seminar sponsored by Michigan First Credit Union in Lathrup Village on Monday. The event was one of more than 300 classes, seminars and activities scheduled in Michigan during Money Smart Week this year. See www.moneysmartweek.org/michigan for other events.
Crooks' tricks
On Monday, about 15 in the group raised their hands after David Waxer, a financial counselor for GreenPath Debt Solutions in Southfield, asked people if they ever experienced identity theft or fraud.
Some spotted fraudulent charges on a credit card after renting a car or going to a restaurant. One man signed up for a trial promotion that cost $4.95 online. He canceled the service before the trial was up. But later, he was wrongly charged $140 twice for that service.
One man's wife pulled out a card one day and it wasn't hers. Somehow, somebody slipped her another card, letting her think she still had her own plastic and then used her card without her knowledge.
Somebody stole a child's Social Security number.
We're all vulnerable to identity theft. We all need to protect our information.
"Keep a close watch on every electronic transaction -- every bank statement," Waxer told the group.
How to fight back
Other suggestions:
• Study your credit report to see if someone has opened credit cards using your name.
See www.annualcreditreport.com. That is the only central site that enables you to request a free report once every 12 months from Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. You can request all three reports at once. Or you can monitor your credit by staggering requests -- say getting one report from Experian in January, another from TransUnion in May and one from Equifax in September.
• Avoid carrying too many credit cards or other ID.
If you've got a pocket-size birth certificate, keep it at home. Don't carry your checkbook on daily errands. Do not leave a car rental agreement in a rented car. Do not carry your Social Security card.
• Be aware that some crooks use cell phones to take pictures of card numbers.
• Pay attention to when certain bills arrive in the mail. Some crooks complete a change of address form so your mail is forwarded to another address where they have access and can buy more goods using your card.
And read every statement. You could find somebody trying to charge $1,000 in Christmas decorations to your bill. One man in the group said that's what happened when somebody got access to credit by stealing his personal information.
Retired teacher Donna St. John's hand shot up the minute the workshop instructor asked if anyone ever had his or her identity stolen.
St. John recalled the time several years ago that somebody tried to buy a refrigerator, washer and dryer with one phone call to Sears after opening a credit card in her name. The store caught it. But St. John, who used to teach at Sterling Heights High School, never forgot how quickly trouble could start.
About 50 people attended the two-hour identity theft seminar sponsored by Michigan First Credit Union in Lathrup Village on Monday. The event was one of more than 300 classes, seminars and activities scheduled in Michigan during Money Smart Week this year. See www.moneysmartweek.org/michigan for other events.
Crooks' tricks
On Monday, about 15 in the group raised their hands after David Waxer, a financial counselor for GreenPath Debt Solutions in Southfield, asked people if they ever experienced identity theft or fraud.
Some spotted fraudulent charges on a credit card after renting a car or going to a restaurant. One man signed up for a trial promotion that cost $4.95 online. He canceled the service before the trial was up. But later, he was wrongly charged $140 twice for that service.
One man's wife pulled out a card one day and it wasn't hers. Somehow, somebody slipped her another card, letting her think she still had her own plastic and then used her card without her knowledge.
Somebody stole a child's Social Security number.
We're all vulnerable to identity theft. We all need to protect our information.
"Keep a close watch on every electronic transaction -- every bank statement," Waxer told the group.
How to fight back
Other suggestions:
• Study your credit report to see if someone has opened credit cards using your name.
See www.annualcreditreport.com. That is the only central site that enables you to request a free report once every 12 months from Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. You can request all three reports at once. Or you can monitor your credit by staggering requests -- say getting one report from Experian in January, another from TransUnion in May and one from Equifax in September.
• Avoid carrying too many credit cards or other ID.
If you've got a pocket-size birth certificate, keep it at home. Don't carry your checkbook on daily errands. Do not leave a car rental agreement in a rented car. Do not carry your Social Security card.
• Be aware that some crooks use cell phones to take pictures of card numbers.
• Pay attention to when certain bills arrive in the mail. Some crooks complete a change of address form so your mail is forwarded to another address where they have access and can buy more goods using your card.
And read every statement. You could find somebody trying to charge $1,000 in Christmas decorations to your bill. One man in the group said that's what happened when somebody got access to credit by stealing his personal information.
No comments:
Post a Comment