When you have realized that you are a victim of identity theft, you will consider changing banks, credit cards and all passwords to your accounts. Eva Velasquez, CEO of Identity Theft Resource Center told NBC News that the victims would be so much stressed and embarrassed that they would not even like to be known.
The Identity Theft Aftermath Report released by Eva’s group showed the following:
- Three quarter of the respondents were severely distressed when they realized that someone had tried to impersonate them to steal off their money.
- Eighty percent felt annoyed about the whole ordeal
- 58 percent confessed that they felt vulnerable.
- Seven percent said that they considered suicide.
So, how can you avoid identity theft?
- Secure mobile phone that has banking details with passwords
- Sellers can use the credit card bin list to detect fraudulent activities in buyer’s card and alert the relevant authorities promptly.
- Do not give your banking details on phone
- Shred receipts, credit offers and account statements once you have gone through them lest someone pick them and goes through them to get your personal information.
- Review your credit report yearly to make sure that no accounts have been opened without your knowledge
- Incase of loss of a debit or credit card, inform your bank and card company to cancel any transactions that may occur when the card has been lost.