Protecting Against Identity Theft
Launch library · evergreen read
Identity theft involves someone using your personal details, such as your full name, date of birth or various identification numbers, to open new accounts, apply for credit or make purchases entirely without your knowledge or genuine consent at any single point along the entire way.
Shredding documents containing personal information properly before disposal, being genuinely cautious about how much personal detail is shared openly on social media, and using strong, unique passwords for financial accounts all meaningfully reduce this particular risk considerably over time, without much ongoing effort actually required.
Checking your credit report periodically for accounts you genuinely do not recognise at all, and reviewing bank statements closely for unfamiliar activity, helps catch identity theft reasonably early, well before it has time to escalate into a much larger, considerably harder to unwind financial problem.
If you suspect your identity has genuinely been compromised in some way, contacting your bank, relevant credit reporting agencies and, in more serious cases, the police promptly gives you the best realistic chance of limiting the damage and properly beginning the whole, sometimes lengthy recovery process.