Identity Theft Prevention Guide - 17 Prevention Tips to Protect Your Family
Follow these Identity Theft Prevention Tips to minimize your risk of becoming a victim:
- Carry only the identification information and the number of credit and debit cards that you’ll actually need.
- Keep your personal information in your home secure, especially if you have roommates, employ outside help or are having service work done in your home.
- Guard your Social Security Number. It can be used to open new accounts, credit cards, or even get a job in your name.
- Cancel unused credit card accounts.
- Don not carry your SSN card; leave it in a secure place.
- Ask about information security procedures in your workplace or at businesses, doctor’s offices, or other institutions that collect personally identifying information from you.
- Order your credit report and monitor it often.
- Remove your name from the marketing lists of the three credit bureaus to reduce the number of pre-approved credit offers you receive.
- Buy a crosscut shredder. Shred all old bank and credit statements and credit card offers before throwing them in the trash.
- Make copies of the contents of your wallet - in case your wallet or purse is stolen.
- Do not leave mail with personal information in your mailbox.
- Never give your credit card number, social security number, or other personal information over the phone unless you trust that individual and/or business.
- Protect your personal information on your computer by installing a firewall and updating your virus protection.
- Do not print your Social Security or Driver’s License number on you checks.
- Carefully examine the charges on your credit card and bank statements.
- Place passwords on your credit card, bank, and phone accounts.
- Subscribe to an identity theft prevention service that will notify you whenever someone tries to assume your identity.
Article Provided By: Identity Theft Prevention Guide
http://identity-theft-prevention-guide.com
Provides up-to-date prevention tips, news, scams, laws, and more on America’s Fastest Growing Crime…Identity Theft.
Spyware Remover Your Defense Against Internet Morons
Spyware is defined as a type of software that discreetly gathers information about a computer user’s online connection without his or her knowledge. Often included as a concealed part of freeware or shareware that a user downloads, spyware will embed itself into the user’s computer and transmit private Internet activity to another party. File sharing programs are notorious for infecting computers with spyware.
Spyware is an invasion of your privacy and can cause problems with the operation of your computer. Spyware can even record what keys you type, your private passwords, and other sensitive information that you don’t want people to know. And it can be notoriously difficult to get rid of.
You can usually tell that you have spyware when settings on your computer such as your default browser are changed. Also, the appearance of frequent pop-up ads is another good indicator that malicious software is affecting your computer. Your computer may suddenly start redirecting you when you type an address into the address bar. You may also notice new toolbars on your browser that were not there previously.
Perhaps the most common and annoying symptom of sypware is an overall sluggishness of your computer. The computer may be painfully slow during startup or shutdown. Going to a new page on the Internet may take minutes instead of seconds.
So what’s a frustrated victim of spyware to do? Get a good spyware remover to eradicate the problem! There are various software programs that perform spyware removal. Some of them are free, some of them are not.
When seeking a good spyware remover, it’s wise to do some preliminary research and compare features and prices before making a purchase or final choice. Not all spyware removers are created equal. Some of the free ones can potentially work better than the ones you pay for, so look around before shelling out money.
One of the most popular free spyware removal programs that you can download is Lavasoft’s AdAware. This program not only helps eradicate irritating spyware from your computer, it also offers protection against browser hijackers, Trojans and aggressive advertisements. Running this free program on a regular basis removes any malicious spyware or content that may compromise your privacy or harm your computer.
Microsoft also offers its own beta version of a free spyware removal tool called Windows Defender. This program will protect your computer from security threats, pop-up windows, and slow or poor performance caused by unwanted spyware and associated programs. Windows Defender features a monitoring system that recommends particular action when spyware is detected. Its streamlined user interface allows the program to run while you are doing other things on your computer.
No matter whether you choose, a spyware remover that is free or one that costs money, the important thing is that you get rid of your spyware as soon as possible before the problem gets out of control.
Copyright © by Roy White
Staff@spyware-remover-free.net
Roy White is owner and publisher of the acclaimed
home computer security website Spyware Removers.
A free online resource of home computer security and available spyware removal programs.
Spyware Remover
http://www.spyware-remover-free.net
Don’t Let Spyware Sneak Up On You
You decide to make an online purchase from a reputable Internet site, so you add the items to your virtual shopping cart and head to the checkout. You enter your billing address, your credit card number, your card’s expiration date, even your card’s 3-digit authorization number. Without even knowing it, you could have provided an identity thief all of the information he or she needs to rack up charges on your account if your computer is infested with a type of spyware known as keyloggers.
Keylogger software keeps track of every letter, number, or symbol you type. Then, the information is transferred from your computer to a third-party. While keyloggers are bad enough, they are only one of over a dozen types of spyware being used by hackers and identity thieves today. What’s worse is that your computer could be infected at this moment, and you may not even realize it. In October 2004, America Online and the National Cyber-Security Alliance conducted a survey about spyware. Eighty percent of respondents found spyware on their computers and 89% of those individuals never knew it was there.1
While some spyware is relatively harmless, other examples can leave you vulnerable. For example, in August 2005 Sunbelt Software discovered a spyware scheme using a program known as CoolWebSearch which was allowing information from a user’s computer to be sent to a central collection point without his or her knowledge. The type of information collected included Internet activity, credit card numbers, instant message conversations, travel plans, and more. Thousands of people were potential victims of identity theft thanks to this one program.
Now how do you stop yourself from being sucked into a spyware scam? There are two answers to that question.
First, you should install anti-spyware software on your computer. This type of software can detect spyware and can help you eliminate it from your system. However, you need to realize that even the best anti-spyware software is not full-proof because identity thieves and hackers are always revising their spyware so it won’t be detected. Keeping your anti-spyware software up-to-date can help reduce this risk.
Second, you need to practice safer Internet behavior. For example, only download programs from trustworthy web sites and never agree to install anything on your computer unless you know specifically what it is. Keeping your Internet Explorer updated is also a good idea because security weaknesses in the browser are often used by spyware to gain access to your personal online activities.
The bad news is that spyware is only one method of stealing your identity. If you want to learn how to protect yourself from spyware and other methods or if you’ve been a victim of identity theft and need to know what steps to take now, you need to read Identity Theft: A Resource Guide from PCSecurityNews.com. The ebook is available at http://www.PCSecurityNews.com.
About The Author
Howard Goff teaches you how to reduce your risk of becoming an Identity Theft victim in his e-Book “Identity Theft, A Resource Guide”. This article is just part of the incredible content contained in this 50-page gold mine of information. Get your free copy of this guide today at: identity theft . Howard Goff has 3 years of specialized experience in the security industry and has been involved in the internet for over 15 years. He founded http://www.pcsecuritynews.com in early 2003 where his company has offered advice and security products to hundreds of thousands of people. Visitors to this website have access to an extensive FAQ and free http://www.pcsecuritynews.com/spywareremover.html?ht=xaca06.
