Protect Yourself From Identity Theft
What's your favorite pizza topping?
That's not an idle question when it comes to protecting your identity. In fact, it's one of many security questions now being used by banks to verify your online banking transactions.
Identity theft is a growing problem, with more than 217 million people affected by data breaches since 2005, according to the nonprofit PrivacyRights.org.
Most of these cases will go unsolved and unprosecuted. Financial institutions simply pay for the losses (passing along the costs), or put the blame on the consumer.
That makes it all the more important that you know the many forms of identity theft, along with what will -- and won't -- protect you. If you think it's only about credit cards, you're probably vulnerable.
A Credit "Freeze" Isn't the Answer
There's widespread advertising for services that promise to put a "freeze" on your credit report, but those services really can't protect you from the most expensive types of identity theft. In fact, consumers are paying big monthly fees for something they could easily do themselves for free.
A temporary credit freeze keeps anyone from opening new credit in your name. You can do that with a click, by going to AnnualCreditReport.com, which connects you to each of the three major credit bureaus to order your free credit report (safely authenticated), and at the same time request a 90-day credit freeze if you want one.
But protecting against someone opening new credit in your name doesn't give you any protection against a number of identity theft schemes. According to the Federal Trade Commission, credit freezes take care of only about 30% of the identity theft problems.
Identity Theft Dangers
Here are a few identity theft dangers that a credit freeze won't protect against:
Pizza and Protection!
All of which brings us back to the issue of your favorite pizza topping... Your bank has probably asked you to create a new password and PIN lately. They want your password to contain at least eight characters, including one upper-case letter and one numeral, and a PIN with at least six digits. If you have multiple accounts, the temptation is to use the same formula for each one -- again exposing you to even more devastating financial consequences of identity theft!
In order to establish a further degree of security, the banks are moving past asking for the last four digits of your Social Security number, or your mother's maiden name, to validate any contacts with them. Now they're asking you to choose at least eight "security" questions, and the answer you'll give when they ask -- at any time -- for verification of a transaction or query.
As I found out in a recent communication when I logged on to bank online, those choices can be unusual. Among the options:
I called the bank, laughing, asking if they were serious. Obviously these "security" questions were written by a 20-something techie, for whom favorite school subjects and first pet name were recent memories. Or maybe the security consultants are Zen masters, for whom a favorite season or time of day are truly memorable.
As for the pizza topping, I remember when I would have demanded pepperoni. But bowing to the demands of kids, I learned to say: "Oh, we're ordering pizza? Anything but anchovies."
Maybe answering these questions will really improve banking security. Or memories! In the meantime, be vigilant about your identity. Check online balances frequently. And don't fall for false promises of protection. Your identity is a valuable thing to lose. And that's The Savage Truth.
