Fighting Identity Fraud In The Age Of Massive Data Theft

A Few High Profile Cases Of Data Theft Have Brought Identity Theft Into The Light

According to a source familiar with the matter, supermarket chain, SuperValu, Inc., may have experienced a data breach to more than 228 of their stores between June 22 and July 17.

A few weeks later, Albertson’s, another large chain, revealed over 700 of their stores may have been compromised

These data breaches are on top of Target, the massive retailer, having over 40 million of their shoppers credit card data stolen last year.

In the digital age, these massive amounts of theft, and identity being compromised are becoming more common.

There are things you can do, as well as ways you can monitor your credit, to make sure that you are protected from these kind of intrusions.

• Take advantage of free credit report sites like Credit Karma. You get your major 3 credit reports for free, with the trade off simply being clicking off ads. This way you can see exactly how you rank, as well as what open lines of credit are available in your name. Plus, you should get in the habit of checking these scores periodically. Financial health is an overlooked issue.
• Call the bank if you think your accounts may have been exposed and have them issue you a new card. This gets you ahead of any transactions that may be made, and also makes the information that may have been compromised invaluable to the hackers.
• If you’re shopping online, make sure you only shop at sites that are protected with SSL. Look for the https: at the beginning of the address to know you’re secure.
• If you think you’ve been hit by identity theft, make sure you call both the authorities to report the fraud, and get copies of the police reports to send to your credit reporting agencies. 
  Also, make sure you take advantage of the help that credit bureaus can offer. At the very least they can put a fraud alert on your credit reports, possibly preventing any new accounts being opened with your information.

The last few years have exposed new, large dangers that are a threat to identities, and credit health. Being aware of how healthy your credit score is, how many accounts are under your name, and what risks there are when using your credit are all things you must focus on to make sure you haven’t been victimized.

We can help protect your identity with our shredding and hard drive destruction services. If you have any questions about identity theft, or need our assistance, contact us and we’ll help you out.