Who am I?: Ways to avoid identity theft
<div align="justify"><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">Ever wondered what lies out there?</font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">Well, think not too far, for somewhere out there in the not-so dim moonlight, someone might painstakingly trying to be you.</font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">For many years now, we all have tried to secure our personal information, techy gurus have developed softwares to safeguard critical information that are electronically kept. Scrupulous persons in their state of solitude are creating ways to get in and steal the information for purposes God knows what.</font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">Sadly, credit cards have become the hottest target for those who want to gain critical information such as personal data, money matters and other concerns imaginable. Let's do an overview of credit card fraud:</font><br /><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">● lost- stolen</font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">● counterfeiting</font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">● card-not present (CNP)</font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">● card-not received</font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">● application fraud</font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">● account take-over</font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">● <strong>identity-theft</strong></font><br /><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><strong>Identity theft </strong>has been a leading source of lost of funds, property, and in certain cases, loss of life, literally and metaphorically speaking. One of the ways that an identity can be stolen or “borrowed” so to speak, is through the internet. Quite alarming, huh? Prevention is better than cure, and in our case, better to know how the enemy moves, so we'll know how to guard our precious assets.</font><br /><br /><br /></div><h1 align="justify"><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><strong>Behind enemy lines</strong></font></h1><div align="justify"><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">You're in a computer cafe and surfing the web, you saw this rare book you've been looking for ages in website, and you immediately want it to be shipped to you doorstep, so you enter your credit card information on their payments tab. Turns out the keyboard has a auto-text generator, and once you leave, someone sits and revisits the sites you clicked and just types the first number (not a probability major here, but, in typing 0-9, I'm guessing they can arrive at the last typed in 10-digit account number). </font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">For the so-insistent and patient mischievous minds, they'll make a background check of their potential victims, they'll wiretap the phone lines, which is a way to tap into your internet connection. What's more chilling is they have great minds filled with endless possibilities to the point of tapping into your keyboard so they can track what you actually type or which sites you are logging into.</font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">Banking websites are also a target for identity thieves. Tapping into the personal banking information is like eating cheesecake for them. Once a person makes a deposit or a withdrawal, a hidden text illegally installed by the thief immediately gives alerts that a banking transaction was made. </font><br /><br /><br /></div><h2 align="justify"><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">Striking back </font></h2><div align="justify"><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">Scary, aren't they? Gives a chilling feeling. Sadly, there are a lot of endless possibilities that thieves can get your identity. But, there are also quite a number of ways you can shield yourself. </font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">Encryption softwares are being developed like crazy to ensure the safety when going online. These encryption softwares functions more likely a password. When you enter your password, the password goes into a series is encrypted into an average 64-bit character string, this string of characters are the ones that are verified and actually accepted for you to have access. This is a shield against website tapping. It's like having a password within a password.</font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">Adding to the programming mood, there is a latest in data security, called Trusted Platform Module (TPM), an identity chip installed in new-generation models of computers. Leaving the complicated protocols and programming workings, makers of this hardware boasts of its fraud-proof capabilities by strengthening anonymity when going online. What TPM basically does is blocking external unauthorized sources to view your “ online signature” which consists of your IP address, your software and hardwares installed. </font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">Banks are also tightening security to ensure that their clients and their inner workings are away from the preying eyes of thieves. When all the safety protocols are up, there will be a “two-step” identification verification when accessing your bank records, besides putting in your password, you will be asked to enter another unique ID online. Kinda like an all-or-nothing scenario.</font></div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2"><strong>Homegrown remedies</strong> </font></div><div align="justify"><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">Even with the high-tech security stuff available, it will never ever hurt to come up with your own preventive measures. Below are some practical suggestions:</font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">● keep all your credit cards in the most secure place</font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">● destroy all expired credit cards </font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">● destroy all credit card receipts</font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">● keep all your personal identification such as social security, driver's license, passport in the most secured place imaginable</font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">● avoid giving important account numbers over the phone</font><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">● alert the concerned authorities as soon as possible when important documents have gone missing</font><br /><br /><br /><font face="tahoma,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" size="2">At the end of the day, being cautious is the key, for in cases of identity theft, it's not only your money that is being stolen, but your life as well. We all have the right to privacy.</font><br /><br /></div> <a href="http://www.onlywire.com/submit?u=http://www.offshoremerchantexperts.com&t=Who%20am%20I?:%20Ways%20to%20avoid%20identity%20theft%20&tags=fraud%20identity%20theft" target="_blank" title="Add this Article to Onlywire"><img src="http://www.onlywire.com/i/onlywire.ico" border="0" alt="" align="absmiddle" /> Add to Onlywire</a>
