Protecting Your Identity
Posted by Michelle Moquin on April 4th, 2013
Good morning!
I think this is really important for everyone to read.
5 Places Where You Should Never Give Your Social Security Number
Every time you go to a new doctor or dentist and they give you a clipboard brimming with documents to fill out and sign, notice how they always ask for your Social Security number? Do you dutifully give it up? Did you ever wonder if they really need it?
I once asked a doctor why he wanted it. His response: “I don’t really know. I guess it’s because we’ve always asked for it.” (In actuality, most doctors ask in case your insurance doesn’t pay the entire invoice and/or to fill out a death certificate if you die. Offer a next of kin who knows the number instead, and your phone number for billing issues.)
Almost every day somebody asks for your Social Security Number and, like the Grand Marshal of a parade throwing rose petals or candy to the crowd, you probably give it up without giving it a second thought — because that’s what you’ve always done.
So, the next time someone asks you for your Social Security number, reflect on this: In December, the Army announced that hackers stole the Social Security numbers of 36,000 visitors to Fort Monmouth in New Jersey, including intelligence officers. Cyber activists took control of the CIA’s website. The private information, including some Social Security numbers, of celebrities and political leaders including FBI Director Robert Mueller and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton were exposed.
The sensitive data of First Lady Michelle Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and Attorney General Eric Holder, recently were posted on a website for the world to see.
Hackers even listened in on a phone call in which the FBI and Scotland Yard were discussing the criminal investigation against those very same hackers!
And these incidents are only the crumbs on top of the coffee cake when you consider that hackers and thieves have improperly accessed more than 600 million consumer files since 2004.
The moral to these horror stories is that if your Social Security number is stored on any computer anywhere, hackers will find a way to access it, or a compromised or disgruntled employee may well walk out the door with it. If your doctor, gym, or child’s grade school claims otherwise, that their security systems can protect your private data better than the CIA, FBI and Scotland Yard, to quote Monty Python: “Run away!”
Your identity is your biggest asset, and your Social Security number is the key to your personal kingdom. With it an identity thief can wreak havoc, hijacking your old credit accounts, establishing new ones, buying cars and houses, committing crimes, even obtaining medical products and services while pretending to be you, endangering not just your credit and your reputation, but also your life.
Consumers whose Social Security numbers are exposed in a data breach are five times more likely to become fraud victims than those who aren’t, according to the latest identity fraud report by Javelin Strategy & Research.
“Just say no,” should be your motto here. For better or worse, you are the gatekeeper. The person most responsible for shielding your Social Security Number is you. Therefore, your mission is to limit, as best you can, the universe of those who gain access to it.
Here’s a short list of companies and organizations that have absolutely no business requesting your Social Security number:
1. Anyone who calls or sends you an official-looking email, who texts you a link to any site or designates a number to call where you are asked to confirm your SSN. If they call, check the credit or debit card that is the subject of the communication, call the customer service number listed on the back, and ask for the security department. If they email or text, do the same, or go directly to the institution’s website (provided you know who they are). Make sure you type the correct URL, and make sure that the page where you are asked to enter your information is secure. Only provide personal information if you’re the one who controls the interaction.
2. Public schools: Your utility bill confirms your address. Your email and phone number give them channels to contact you in an emergency. Asking for your Social Security number is overkill.
3. Little League, summer camp and the like: For the same reasons as school, a Social Security number should never be required by these groups. If they ask for your child’s birth certificate, show it to them, don’t leave it with them unless they can prove they will protect it. And even then, can you really believe them? If you use credit to pay for the activity, the organization may need your Social Security number. If you pay for it upfront or with a direct debit to your bank account or credit card, they don’t. Period.
4. Supermarkets: A frequent shopper card is neither a loan, nor a bank account. It’s merely a tool grocery stores use to track your purchases, primarily for marketing purposes. Regardless, many supermarket chains request customers’ Social Security numbers on their application forms. Refuse.
5. Anybody who approaches you on the street, whether it’s a cellphone company salesman offering a free T-shirt or someone running a voter registration campaign: Never, ever give your SSN. If you want an ill-fitting T-shirt festooned with corporate logos, buy one. If you want to register to vote, go to your county board of elections in person.
This is the short list. There are plenty of other organizations that should never get your Social Security number, and if you know one that I’ve left out, please leave it in the comments.
Don’t just hand it over your Social Security number to anyone. Once you realize how often you are asked for it, you may be surprised. It happens all the time. So, the next time someone does, as they inevitably will, here’s how to handle it:
1. Take a minute and think. Maybe they ask for SSNs blindly, because everyone else does, or because that’s how they’ve always done it. Maybe they actually need it. See if their reason sounds legitimate. (Update: For example, Credit.com’s Credit Report Card does ask for your SSN in order to generate your credit score and credit report summary — an industry standard — but the information is fully encrypted with a bank level authentication process.)
2. Negotiate. There are many different ways to identify you without a Social Security number, including your driver’s license or account number. Fight to use those instead.
3. If you must share your Social Security number, do so, but make sure the people taking it down have strong security measures in place to protect it. That said, you only have their assurance and frankly, in light of the mistakes people make and the sophistication level of hackers, who really knows if they can protect it?
If all this sounds like a giant pain in the neck, you’re right. It is. In the midst of our busy lives, we shouldn’t be the only ones concerned with protecting our most valuable identity asset, but it is what it is. Until somebody creates a Silver Bullet for identity theft, we are forced to take matters into our own hands.
Don’t be passive; ask the companies and nonprofit groups with which you do business how they plan to protect you. Do they password protect and encrypt all the personal information they collect? Do they have strict controls on who has access to computers containing your Social Security number, and do they keep this sensitive data off laptops, tablets and hard drives that are easy to steal or lose?
Like the doctor I met, many companies collect Social Security numbers they don’t need because they’re operating on autopilot. They’ve always done it, and their colleagues at other companies do it, so the practice continues and spreads on the strength of simple, dumb inertia. I believe that we are smarter than that. By demanding that companies do a better job protecting our personal information, and refusing to hand out our Social Security numbers like candy at a parade, we can force them to get smarter, too. And if they don’t think we’re serious about this and the government doesn’t finally force them off their Social Security number addiction, it is highly likely that the ultimate regulator of the American economic system, class action attorneys, will be knocking on their doors.
*******
Readers: I think this artitcle gives some great advice. I’ve had my identity stolen twice. A head ache but not anything that I wasn’t able to handle quite quickly. I have heard nightmare stories though of identity theft really ruining peoples’ lives. As much as I am leery and don’t give my SS# out on many forms that I fill out, I could do better and ask questions when I am requested to give it.
Thoughts? Blog me if you can. Missing you.
Zen Lill: Thanks. I completely forgot about Skin So Soft. I like that stuff, and didn’t mind the smell. Used it for travel many times. Thanks for the reminder. Well…It looks like its you ‘n me on the blog.
Peace & Lovin’…
Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.
Gratefully your blog host,
michelle
Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)
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April 4th, 2013 at 9:18 am
Hi Misch, yes, we are definitely alone lately, maybe that portal will open up soon? Another great article that people need to be reminded of, have to be mindful of these seemingly inconsequential questions, most of the time they really don’t need such detailed information. Luv, ZL
April 4th, 2013 at 4:19 pm
Pretty good advice though having to think twice before getting credit with a credit freeze is kind of an advantage in my book. It reduces the chances that you’ll get yourself into a new loan or credit card on a whim.
Also note that credit freezes and thaws are free for ID theft victims.
Also note that many states are requiring that the credit reporting companies provide thaws within 15 minutes or less from a phone call or web-based system.
Any other state that doesn’t have this law should pass it. There’s no reason that the credit reporting companies can do this for one state and not another unless they’re being difficult on purpose (class action lawsuit anyone?)
April 4th, 2013 at 4:20 pm
Good Article.
I had my identity stolen last year, and 2 things come to mind.
First, in past times the horror stories were that it took months/years to clean up these messes. These days it is so common that most credit companies have a theft department and work to resolve these things quickly.
Thus, I think a lot of these services are sold on the scare factor. Personally I don’t really trust them and didn’t find it took that much time or money. Likewise, if you keep an eye on your credit report and catch things early, the difference will be night and day from finding something years down the road.
Of course I had to have a large amount of notarized documents (something like 7 cards open in my name, and I had to file a notarized form with each company).
If my firm did not provide this complimentary, this kind of stuff can get expensive. So I would argue that it is not free (point #3 I guess). But then again, probably cheaper than Lifelock – I’ll give you that.
The other point I had is I have never been able to trace the security breach. I have to assume it was a rogue employee at the university I went to or one of the many investment houses I invest with. I will probably never know.
But I think Americans are completely unaware of how much of their data is out there in the open. When I think of the places that “have” to have my social security # & personal info – the list is endless. I haven’t ruled out the IRS or state taxing agency either, for leaking my info.
I have a list a mile long of where the security breach might have occurred. I did everything right to protect my data, but unfortunately I can’t say the same for everyone I entrust my personal data with. It is very frustrating.
April 4th, 2013 at 4:20 pm
Good article.
You can also order free “specialty” reports like employment and tenant history reports to make sure your name is not associated with other’s activity.
April 4th, 2013 at 4:21 pm
Keep in mind that you cannot place a fraud alert on your credit reports just because you want to.
Under the law, you have to have a “good faith suspicion” that you have been or about to become a victim of fraud.
April 4th, 2013 at 4:23 pm
Security freezes are free in my state (Indiana), although I think only a couple of other states have that same advantage. I froze my files after someone applied for a credit card in my name (but got denied, thankfully).
One must remember that all the frenzy about credit scores and reports is created, in part, by the credit bureaus. Just something to keep in mind.
April 4th, 2013 at 4:24 pm
Not only is it true that you should never pay to have someone else protect your identity, it’s important to know that the credit card companies actually like identity theft.
It is something that brings fear to consumers and has turned into a billion dollar money making business for credit companies that say they can “protect” you. Therefore you will hear terrifying stories of what identity theft can do to help build this business more.
It’s important to understand that the companies that are promoting protection love identity theft because it makes them more money when people fear it.
April 4th, 2013 at 4:24 pm
The important thing to remember is that the services can’t protect you from identity theft. They can only help or alert you earlier when something may have happened. It’s up to you to take the precaution to prevent it as best you can.
April 4th, 2013 at 4:25 pm
Great article, Michelle. I went to annualcredit report to pull my credit report. It’s something I hadn’t done in years since my purse got stolen.
Also, I plan to pull my kid’s reports too. I hear of so much ID theft that involves kid’s SSN that is never discovered until the child is older and needs credit.
April 4th, 2013 at 4:25 pm
Virtual credit card numbers.
Some time ago I used my credit card in a major airport to acquire wifi service. My number was stolen. Now I use a “virtual credit card number” for most on-line purchases especially when traveling. It’s offered by my credit card company.
I can set up several at a time and delete them anytime. They usually have a limited life, 1-2 months. However, I usually cancel one after a week or so or at the end of a trip (after valid charges have cleared).
April 4th, 2013 at 4:25 pm
I really appreciate this article — I’ve been teaching identity theft classes at a credit union for several years. People are always so worried about getting their identity stolen, yet they won’t take even the bare-minimum steps to protect themselves.
I always try to emphasize that there’s NO need to get paranoid (as many people do) — rather, they need to just PAY ATTENTION. The tips in your article are very helpful and I plan to share them. Thanks for the wisdom!
April 4th, 2013 at 4:26 pm
Please remember that the word “Identity Theft” is a semantic trick played by financial institutions to turn the blame for their sloppy practices on customers.
It used to be called “fraud” before. Your identity cannot be stolen, your name can be misused, and it should be up to the financial institutions thus defrauded to proof that it was really you who got a credit.
April 4th, 2013 at 4:27 pm
I stood beside a lady at the checkout counter at our local supermarket the other day. It was very easy for me to see her SS# on her check, so after she’d finished writing it, I said hello, then recited her number to her.
She said it was more convenient to put her DL, SS and phone number on her check and seemed stunned when I told her how easily someone with her SS# or DL# could steal her identity.
Even these days, with all that’s been written and broadcast about identity theft, some people are still clueless.
April 4th, 2013 at 4:28 pm
One that was missed, which offers some protection, but less than you might expect – DON’T sign your credit cards! Instead with a permanent marker, write “Request Photo / Signature ID” in the signature space.
This obviously can’t do anything to prevent telephone or on line abuse, but it should make it harder to abuse your card in person, and “live sales” are the harder abuse to trace*. The downside is that amazingly few clerks actually ask for the ID in my experience…
*In person abuse is harder to trace because the abuser doesn’t have to supply a useful address – just pick up the merchandise and leave.
Telephone or online sales require an address to ship the merchandise to, which has to be accessible to the abuser in some way, and is therefore traceable.
April 4th, 2013 at 4:29 pm
OK, There is a lot of extremely important and relevant information here. There is one very important ingredient missing in protecting your identity. I am amazed how often this is overlooked in everything I read from blogs to USPS literature.
A cross-cut shredder is by far the best. But if somebody takes your mail before you can shred it, the shredder is useless. With a regular mailbox you may not even know you are missing mail.
With a “locking mailbox” you may at least know somebody has taken your mail. What everybody really needs is a true security locking mailbox. One that you cannot just walk by and pop it open with a screw driver or reach down in and grab the mail.
There are only a couple out there that fit the bill. I, of course, prefer the Mail Boss security locking mailbox. I can sleep at night knowing my shredder will get to chew on some trash the next day.
April 4th, 2013 at 4:29 pm
OK, There is a lot of extremely important and relevant information here. There is one very important ingredient missing in protecting your identity. I am amazed how often this is overlooked in everything I read from blogs to USPS literature.
A cross-cut shredder is by far the best. But if somebody takes your mail before you can shred it, the shredder is useless. With a regular mailbox you may not even know you are missing mail.
With a “locking mailbox” you may at least know somebody has taken your mail. What everybody really needs is a true security locking mailbox. One that you cannot just walk by and pop it open with a screw driver or reach down in and grab the mail.
There are only a couple out there that fit the bill. I, of course, prefer the Mail Boss security locking mailbox. I can sleep at night knowing my shredder will get to chew on some trash the next day.
April 4th, 2013 at 4:49 pm
Hello,
It also helps to conceal home address completely from all who search databases.
Thanks.
April 4th, 2013 at 4:50 pm
Very good article! In reference to #15 (use a cross cut shredder), there are documents that you may not want to necessarily shred, so I bought an Identity Theft Protection stamp to block out personal information on documents to make my social security #, address, and other personal information unreadable.
April 4th, 2013 at 4:50 pm
I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions on what I could do? I lived with a previous friend and when I moved out I forgot my binder with all my important information. It had banking statements, my ssn card and my birth certificate in it.
I stopped my bank account and set up a new one. I don’t know what i can do about my SSN card and birth certificate. I heard throu the grape vine she’s been using them. I was told i would have to go to small claims court but I cannot aforrd that.
April 4th, 2013 at 5:22 pm
How to Write Your Memoirs
So everyone will want to read them
People write their memoirs to preserve their life stories. But they often discover that memoirs don’t just benefit future readers—the act of writing a memoir can have a profound impact on the writer, too.
Writing memoirs helps memoirists better understand themselves. Reliving past victories helps them regain spirit and confidence that might have ebbed over the years. Rethinking old failures could help them work through long-suppressed missteps and traumas.
Example:
A woman in her 70s always spoke glowingly of her late mother—but when she wrote her own memoirs, the stories that she included about her childhood suggested that her mother was a very flawed parent.
She realized that she was angry at her mother and had felt abandoned all her life. The realization explained a feeling of emptiness that had stayed with her.
Writing a memoir can be a daunting proposition, particularly for people who haven’t written anything longer than a letter since high school. Here’s how to craft a memoir that will be a joy to write and to read…
PLANNING YOUR MEMOIRS
Don’t attempt to recount every detail of your life in your memoirs—you’ll end up with a tedious, hard-to-read book. Instead, focus on telling only a relatively small number of stories—10 may be plenty.
Each of these stories might highlight a crucial phase or turning point of your life. Together, they’ll show how you’ve gotten to where you are in an interesting, readable way.
Examples:
One story might be about how you first found success in your career…another about when you and your spouse were just starting out…the third might be about having young children…the fourth about facing the greatest challenge of your life…and so on.
Two potential alternatives to this approach…
You could choose only stories about a single aspect of your life if this part of your life is particularly notable or holds important lessons.
Example:
Someone who has a serious disability might write a memoir consisting entirely of stories about how he/she coped with this condition. Such a memoir could be a valuable resource for others who have a similar disability.
You could share humorous anecdotes from your life. A memoir that sets laughter or a comedic viewpoint as its primary goal usually doesn’t lead its writer to any deeper understanding of his life.
Still, writing such a memoir can be an enjoyable project, and the result can be a fun read for friends and descendants—assuming that the stories are as funny as the memoirist believes.
Some of the stories you wish to tell in your memoir might come immediately to mind, but others likely will require reflection. Flip through your photo albums, reread any correspondence you’ve saved, and chat with friends and relatives who have shared your past.
When you recall a story that might be worth telling, jot down the idea. The Memory List Question Book, available for free through my Web site, can help you dig even deeper into your memories in search of stories worth including in your memoir (www.TurningMemories.com/memorylist.html, registration required).
This ebook features a long list of questions meant to tap into the past. Don’t try to answer every question—just focus on those that resonate with you. Use the questions as a guide rather than a formula.
PUTTING IT ON PAPER
Five tips when you sit down to write…
Show, don’t tell. Rather than tell your readers how you felt or what you were thinking at the time, use action, setting and dialogue to show them. This makes for a more engaging, exciting read.
Examples:
You don’t need to write, “I was really cold” if you write, “I shivered under my parka in the freezing rain”…You don’t need to write, “Barbara was angry with me,” if you write, “Barbara threw a plate against the wall inches from my head.”
Be honest. Some people put their public faces on when they write their memoirs—they present themselves and their families as they wish to be seen, not as they truly are.
You don’t have to disclose things that you consider private in your memoir, but do be completely honest about everything you choose to include. Dishonesty tends to show through in memoirs, and it could cause readers to doubt the veracity of the rest of the memoir, too.
Set a specific time to write each day. Memoirs tend not to get written unless memoirists make writing a part of their daily schedules. Try to write for perhaps 40 minutes per session—long enough to make progress but not so long that writing becomes a chore.
After you’ve written a story, go back and shorten it by 10% to 20%. First drafts almost always can be improved by removing unnecessary words, sentences and paragraphs.
Write an introduction after you’ve written all of your stories. One simple way to write an introduction is to take your readers to a high point or a low point of your life, then ask how you got there.
Example:
A woman began her memoirs by recounting the crowning achievement of her professional life—accepting a prestigious marketing award in London—then asking how she reached this point after spending the first seven years of her career as a small-town schoolteacher.
FINDING HELP
If you want your memoirs to be very well-written but your writing skills are limited, consider hiring a professional memoir coach or editor.
The rates charged by these pros vary from a few hundred dollars to many thousands, depending on experience level and services provided.
Make sure that you’re clear about what you’re getting before you agree to work with someone—some will completely overhaul your manuscript, while others just provide occasional guidance.
You could even hire a ghostwriter to do all of the writing for you. Skilled ghostwriters can be expensive, however—potentially five figures. (You can get a free 70-page book on choosing the right ghostwriter by sending an e-mail to memoirs@turningmemories.com.)
Online, use search terms such as “memoir editor,” “memoir coach” or “memoir ghostwriter” to find candidates. Favor those who can provide numerous references and well-written writing samples and with whom you sense a natural chemistry—you don’t want to trust your memoir to someone whose outlook on life differs substantially from your own.
Example:
If you consider your political viewpoints, religion or ethnic background an important part of who you are, it’s probably best to select a memoir coach or editor who shares this background or viewpoint.
If you don’t want to spend money obtaining help with your memoir, consider joining a local writers group to obtain feedback on your writing. Many local libraries host such groups.
You even can publish your memoir without spending a fortune. Companies such as Lulu (www.Lulu.com) and CreateSpace (www.CreateSpace.com) turn manuscripts into professional-looking books for a reasonable price.
Source: Denis Ledoux, author of Turning Memories into Memoirs: A Handbook for Writing Lifestories (Soleil). Based in Lisbon Falls, Maine, he leads workshops on memoir writing and has been named the Lifewriting Professional of the Year by the Association of Personal Historians.
He has worked with dozens of memoirists as a memoir ghostwriter, editor and coach. He also has won the Maine Fiction Award and twice received the Maine Writing Fellowship Award. http://www.TurningMemories.com
April 5th, 2013 at 3:45 am
Michelle, You are a beautiful woman and laced with all that talent, someone is a very lucky man. I wish it were me oh, so very often.