The US government is reporting that identity theft has costs the American public over $1.5 billion in 2013
This staggering number points out the need for all of us to take whatever precautions are necessary to prevent this from happening to you. As I've said in the past do not give any personal information such as social security number, bank account numbers or credit card numbers to anyone over the phone or online less you are absolutely sure that they are legitimate and you are familiar with them. I know this doesn't protect you when the thieves hack into corporations such as Target and Neiman Marcus but it is prudent to follow this advice..
Small – amount scams can cost you plenty
When you are reviewing your monthly credit card statement I am sure you scan down the column looking for large amounts to make sure they are legitimate. If you see a relatively small amount say under $20 you may not pay any attention to it as it is to small an amount to take the time to call your credit card company.
Recently the Better Business Bureau released a notice that the credit card numbers that were stolen over the holidays have had a fraudulent charge of $9.94 on millions of credit cards.
Some are calling this a new scam but in reality it's not. The small amount scam has been around for years. In the beginning scammers would charge a small amount to an online site and cancel the order when it was verified that the card was good.
Because of the enormous amount of credit card accounts that were hacked over the holidays, it has been extremely lucrative for the scammers (3 million credit card charges that were three dollars each equals $9 million) and because of the small dollar amount it makes it more likely the charges will go unnoticed for a longer period of time.
I know it takes time to call the bank on these small unfamiliar charges but do it because as I mentioned above if they get away with the small charges it is just a matter time before they hit you with a major charge.
Better Business Bureau advice
you should heed
<I f you find bogus charges on your card cancel it immediately.
> If you lose your card you should report it immediately. By doing this you won't have to pay the > $50 fee if your card gets used by the thief
> Do not leave your cards or statement out in plain sight
>After reading the statement shred it or store it in a secure location
>As I've mentioned many times before when ordering over the phone or online know who's on the other end before you give your card number
> If you pick up your mail on the way out to go shopping and you leave your mail in the car do not leave it in plain sight put in the glove box or covered up
.
> Also review your landline phone bill each month. There's is a scam where people are getting charged for three way calls they didn't make. Call your provider if you find you have been billed for this service
I believe the take away from all of this is you should take the time to sit down and review every bill you receive. Make sure that all the charges are legitimate and accurate to protect yourself from identity theft but also from legitimate human error, it will be time well spent
.
Everyone Needs a Will…Even You
I know this is a subject that people generally don't like to discuss. But it is very important for everyone to provide their loved ones with a will at their most stressful time. The link below will give you some very valuable information on the structure of your will.
I've mentioned in the past that Peter Brusso and I have developed a website dedicated to bringing awareness to the senior citizens of the potential for identity theft and scams that they may encounter. I live in the Coachella Valley and because of the demographics it is Ground Zero for these senior oriented scams. We have posted new podcasts on our website and I invite all of you to check them out.
Also Peter is an engineer and has many years of experience in marketing and web development. He has a marketing site that anyone who is interested in Internet marketing,or how to use social media to develop your business should take the time to review the site..
http://infocard.cc/101_Marketing_Podcasts.html
And in closing I once again ask for your comments be they positive or negative, My mission for this blog is to try and alert people of the threats to their identity and provide common sense tips on how to protect yourself.
richardbentley.us/
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