Avoid Identity Theft – Don’t Go Phishing

Many people have heard of phishing but still don’t understand the concept. Phishing is an attempt to fraudulently gain access to your username and password for an online account that contains sensitive information such as your credit card number. Phishing is commonly executed via email. Perhaps the best way to explain phishing is to show an example.

Below is a common phishing attempt received by my dad via email earlier this week:

From: "PayPal Inc"
Date: March 5, 2008 8:45:56 AM CST
Subject: Required Security Update
Reply-To:

Dear Customer,

As part of our security measures, we regularly screen activity in the PayPal system. We are contacting you after noticing an issue on your account.

We requested information from you for the following reason:

Our system detected unusual activity on your PayPal account.

Case ID Number: PP-316-510-158

Please click the link below and log in as soon as possible:

https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_login-run(this is normally a link)

Once you log in, you will be provided with steps to restore your account access. We appreciate your understanding as we work to ensure account safety.

In accordance with PayPal's User Agreement, your account access will remain limited until the issue has been resolved. Unfortunately, if access to your account remains limited for an extended period of time, it may result in further limitations or eventual account closure.

We thank you for your prompt attention to this matter. Please understand that this is a security measure intended to help protect you and your account. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Sincerely,
PayPal Account Review Department

The above email allegedly comes from PayPal claiming “unusual activity on your PayPal account” and makes an attempt to look legitimate. Like many phishing attempts, this email tries to create panic so you immediately click on the link to investigate the issue. When you receive an email like this, don’t panic. Immediately delete the email and never click on the link. If you are concerned that your account may be compromised then contact your account provider directly.

Get Rich Quick? Not So Fast

I’m sure you’ve all seen the late night infomercials on television promising you easy riches. All you need to do is purchase their “wealth-building” materials and you are on your way to financial freedom. I don’t know anyone who has admittedly fallen for such a scheme so I had to obtain stories from Ripoff Report.

Lisa from Preston, Iowa comments on Don Lapre’s Making Money Package:

“I spent big bucks to get the internet pages for four companies and never got anything but a call from some other salesperson that told me they went bankrupt. The credit card companies are trying to help, but if they can not I will need help from elsewhere. Hope that someone can help. It was over 5000 that I sunk in this crap, I was desperate and depressed--- and stupid!"

Perhaps you’ve heard of Carlton Sheets and his Real Estate System. Don from Interlochen, Michigan writes:

“My wife initially purchased this product after a television advertisement. The commercial misrepresented the price of the program, which is over $500, as $120. The materials were received and were mediocre in quality, but she was determined to uphold her end of the deal. This organization waited until after the deadline had passed and then sent an invoice for over $500. The materials were all returned to this organization, and they realized that we were onto them, so they jumped the gun and accelerated the payment schedule to collect earlier than they stated, before we could stop payment on the credit card. Upon being called, they stated that they had closed the account, leaving a 'zero balance,' (after illegitimately collecting over $200.) They waited a month and then sent out a new bill, stating a new account balance of $48. These people are crooks and liars, and should be shut down.”

I'm interested to hear what my readers have to say. Have you been successful with these "Get Rich Quick" programs? Have you been burned? Please share your story.

Identity Theft Prevention Tips

Yesterday I received a letter from the United States Postal Service offering valuable information with helpful tips to “deter, detect, and defend” yourself against identity theft.

Here’s the first paragraph from the letter:

"Identity theft is a serious crime that has many sources. Every year, people from all walks of life become its victims. While I am pleased that in a recent Federal Trade Commission (FTC) survey only 2% of all victims reported that the theft of their identity was connected to the mail, that’s still too many. We will keep working to make the mail even more secure and strive to reduce that percentage to zero."
– John E. Potter, Postmaster General

The letter contained an enclosed brochure from the FTC. I recommend everyone read this helpful information and follow the advice.

Check Your Credit Report for Free

Don't get ripped off! You can check your credit score for free at AnnualCreditReport.com. You are entitled to receive one free credit report every 12 months from each of the nationwide consumer credit reporting companies – Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. This free credit report can be requested through the above website, by phone or by mail.

I use my free credit reports as a safeguard against identity theft. Monitor your credit activity by alternating your credit report requests between the 3 credit reporting companies. By doing so, you will be able to check your credit activity every 4 months for free. This can be a great safeguard against identity theft at no cost to you.