Play it safe this holiday season

December 8, 2010 – 11:52 am

The holiday season is upon us. Christmas lights have gone up and Nativity scenes have replaced fall decorations on residential lawns.

With all the chaos the holidays bring, it’s easy to overlook personal safety. But you can be sure that identity thieves are paying attention.

The increase in purchasing activity characteristic this time of year presents a great opportunity for identity thieves to prey upon unwitting victims. To remain safe against today’s tech savvy thieves, consumers must learn how to protect themselves. Here are some tips.

Make sure no one can see your password or PIN when you are entering during a purchase. Don’t store your password or PIN with your credit or debit cards.

Don’t carry all of your credit or debit cards with you when you shop. That way, if your wallet or purse is stolen, you won’t lose all of your cards. Only carry what you must have.

Write down the account and customer service numbers for each of your credit cards and keep them in a secure place at your home, so that if your cards are stolen, you can quickly contact the card issuers and stop fraudulent use before it happens. This will also speed up the issuance of replacement cards.

Monitor your accounts online. Most card-issuing institutions offer some form on online service so consumers can check balances and use via the Internet. By keeping a constant eye on the activity, you’ll quickly spot any fraudulent activity, whether or not your card is stolen.

You should never respond to unsolicited e-mails from vendors or businesses. This could be a form of Internet phishing, which occurs when you receive an e-mail from a phony organization or business that says you need to go to your account and “verify” the information. You shouldn’t respond to notices that you’ve won the lottery or have been left money by a long-lost dead relative. Other scams tell you there have been unauthorized charges to your account and that you need to log in immediately.

If making online purchases, make sure you only shop with legitimate, trusted and well-known sites. You may want to consider using PayPal or another payment service.

Doing these things will help protect your identity from being stolen and having some criminal enjoy the fruits of your labor.

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