Get clue to prevent identity theft crisis

by Melissa Rinehart, associate editor

 

Imagine being a 17-year-old and finding out that your credit is ruined because you purchased a houseboat at  age 7. 

Zach Friesen  was a victim of identity theft.  When he was 17, he started to look for a student loan to help finance his education and realized that he was deeply in debt. It took nearly $1,300  and 10 years to clear his name, which later doubled to $ 2,400. Friesen still has to face being the victim today. 

  Friesen  started his own program called “Identity Theft and You” in early 2004, after being a victim of identity theft. His program is designed to inform high school and college students about  identity theft.

  College and high students need to be aware that they are targets of identity theft. One out of three people are victims. There are ways students can make sure that  their identity has not been stolen.

 Identity theft is extremely hard to trace. One in 10 crime remains unnoticed for more than two years.

The best way for someone to find out if he or she has  been a victim is to order a free credit report (annualcreditreport.com). If someone believes he or she may be a victim, contact the police to file a report.

It is 40 times more likely that your identity will be is stolen than your house will be broken into. It is really important to “lock it up,” says  Friesen. 

There are many ways to make sure you lock up your identity. One of  Friesen’s supporters for his program is Lifelock. The main purpose of their companies is to protect your family. They do multiple things  such as request a credit bureau to activate fraud alerts every 90 days. They also will call them back to make sure they will activate the alerts again. They will also ask the credit card companies to take your name off the pre-approved offers, and they will send out annual  credit reports. They have a program called Wallet Lock, designed for those who lose a wallet. You just  call them to take care of their rest. If your identity is stolen while you are a member of Lifelock, they will pay for legal fees up to $100,000. Learn more about what Lifelock is about if by visiting  their web site which at www.lifelock.com.

“Lifelock tries to make a difference,” says Friesen.

The top cities for identity theft victims in  Texas are Houston with more than  3,000, complaints, Dallas with 2,000, San Antonio with more than 1,000, and Fort Worth with a little more than 1,000. The identity theft complaints from Texas victims are a little more than 26,000 annually, according to a 2005 report by the Federal Trade Commission.  Some tips for avoiding identity theft include shredding all documents that list a name and address, along with all pre-approved credit card mailings, bank statements, medical bills and insurance documents. College students living in a  residence hall   should look into getting a lock box or safe for their personal documents, because they can never keep up with the visitors.

 There are some long-term effects of being an identity theft victim. One could lose job opportunities in the future, as well as  be refused for education, housing, or car loans.

Identity theft should not be taken lightly under any circumstances. Your identity is one of the most important things that you have, so it should be valued greatly. Many people do not realize that this could happen to them at a moment’s notice. 

One out of four identity theft victims have no clue that their identity was stolen. So use caution when it comes to protecting your identity.

 

Photo Courtesy of Lifelock