Equifax, Inc – a major credit bureau, announced on Thursday, 9/7/17, that a massive data breach was discovered in July, which may have exposed names, birth dates, Social Security numbers and addresses of approximately 143 million U.S. consumers. The current US population is approximately 326 million, so this data breach potentially affected 44% of Americans! In addition, a smaller amount of driver’s license numbers, credit card numbers and certain documents were obtained. The breach lasted from mid-May to July of 2017.Continue reading “What You Need To Know About the Equifax Data Breach”→
I personally received a call this week from a phone scammer! These thieves were out to steal my credit card numbers by stating they were my credit card provider company, and for security purposes needed me to verify my credit card number. They had my name, phone number (obviously), expiration date, and the last 4 digits of my credit card. What they did not have were the other 12 digits of my card(s). For verification and security purposed they asked me to provide the full credit card number. Thankfully, a red flag immediately went up in my mind, and I stated. “If you are my provider credit card company, then for verification and security purposes YOU PROVIDE my credit card numbers!”
Because I have LegalShield and IDShield services and protection, I immediately opened my LegalShield app on my phone and pushed the link to call my private investigator at Kroll.
My Kroll private investigator reminded me, “Never provide your card number or any other personally identifiable information over the phone unless you are the one who made the call.” He also made a note on my account and assured me that they were on top of monitoring my identity.
If you receive one of these calls, or get an automated call/voice or text message, remember the following advice:
1. Don’t trust caller ID. Scammers often have the capability to mask their call information, which is known as spoofing.
2. Don’t share your personally identifiable information (PII). If you are already doing business with the company represented, they should already have all of your information.
3. Don’t react too quickly. It’s very important to remain calm, even if you think you are about to lose a service or if you think a punitive action is about to be taken.
4. DO NOT press one or wait on the line for a live person – these scam operations do not acknowledge the Do Not Call list and your response may lead to more scam calls.
5. DO NOT call back the number provided or click on any website hyperlinks. Instead, independently verify that the message was sent by a legitimate source by visiting the company website, calling customer service directly, or some other form of contact, as long as it is initiated by you.
6. Your service provider may be able to block the incoming telephone number, but keep in mind there are limitations to this service – scammers frequently use multiple numbers, and there are many telephone scams running at any given time.
7. You should report your experience to the FTC directly on their website. For scams involving the IRS, you should also use the IRS’ own form here.
Overall, Kroll’s advice is simple: “If you find yourself in any of these situations, DO NOT release any personally identifiable information; hang up.”
What are the odds that someone will steal a child’s identity? Why would a thief do that, and what exactly can parents do to keep it from happening?
A 2011 joint industry-academic examination of 40,000 children caught up in a data breach found that someone else appeared to be using 10.2 percent of their Social Security numbers. Most of those instances happened before the breach in question.
Children are 51 times more likely to have their identity stolen than adults! So identity theft for children does happen, and here’s why: Children’s credit reports are clean. That’s attractive to people who want to begin their financial lives anew for any number of reasons. Plus, minors don’t check their credit reports or review monthly bills the way grown-ups do, which means thieves may not get caught for years or even decades. Thieves sometimes use children’s Social Security numbers and other data to file fake tax returns and get illegitimate refunds, gain access to health care and work legally even if they are not citizens.
So what are the ways to keep private data private that are within our control? Don’t carry around Social Security cards. Keep them under lock and key at home. Keep your child’s date of birth off social media. Talk to your offspring about where to click and not to click on websites and in incoming email. Question school officials and doctors who want children’s Social Security numbers for forms, as it may not truly be necessary.
“Social Security numbers are like money in the bank, and thieves don’t need to use them at any specific moment in history,” he said. “You’re going to have to look over your shoulder for the rest of your life.”
For peace of mind, get identity theft protection for you and your family! IDShield provides privacy and security monitoring, consultation, and Comprehensive Identity Restoration from Kroll. So in the unfortunate event something does happen to your identity, you’ll have professional help in getting your identity restored to what it was before the fraud occurred. To ensure you have the best coverage possible, there is an IDShield Family plan that includes you, your spouse/partner, and up to 8 children.
For as little as $19.95 a month you can have the peace of mind that you and your family are protected from identity theft. Visit joncannon.co to get your protection today! Watch this video to learn more.
Millions of Americans are affected by identity theft each year. Get smart about protecting yourself with IDShield. Our plans provide Security and Privacy Monitoring as well as unlimited consultation so you can get advice if you have a question about Identity Theft. IDShieldalso provides Comprehensive Identity Restoration from Kroll Advisory Solutions with a $5MM Service Guarantee – so in the unfortunate event that something does happen to your identity, you’ll have professional help in getting your identity restored to what it was before the fraud occurred.
