POLICE are urging people to take steps to prevent becoming victims of identity theft.
Identity Fraud is often quoted as the fastest growing crime in Britain and involves the use of other people’s personal details to commit crime.
An identity theft victim from Studley said: “The first I knew of it was when I started receiving letters for unpaid bills for thousands of pounds run up on different store cards.
“The thieves had used my name and address, made a fake bank card and drivers licence and used those as proof to open store card accounts. They then went on a spending spree.”
It took the victim months to clear up the fraud and restore his credit standing.
“I was at my wit’s end, but the finance houses for the store cards were very good, as were Warwickshire Police, but when I went to take out a mobile phone contract I found I was regarded as a bad debtor, even though this had nothing to do with me. They also never caught the culprits.”
Police advise:
1) Register to vote at your current address (Lenders use the electoral roll to check who is registered as living at a particular address)
When registering to vote, tick the box to opt out of the “Edited” register to prevent unsolicited marketing mail. (This does not affect credit checks)
Sign up with the mail preference service to prevent marketing letters. (M.P.S. is a free service enabling consumers to have their names and addresses removed from mailing lists:- Telephone 0207 2913300 or www.mpsonline.org.uk
Protect mail left in communal areas of residential properties.
Re-direct your mail when moving home.
Do not leave documents containing personal information in view.
2) Be extremely wary of unsolicited phone calls, letters or emails from your bank, or other financial institutions, asking you to confirm your personal details, passwords, pin numbers and security numbers.
Dispose of anything containing your personal or banking details by using a cross cut shredder, tearing them up into tiny pieces or incinerating them.
Always sign up to American Express SafeKey, Mastercard SecureCode OR Verified by Visa when you receive your cards, even if you don’t intend to use your cards online.
Never reply to unsolicited Texts
Sign up to the Telephone Preference Service to prevent marketing phone calls. (T.P.S. is a free service. It is the official Opt out register on which you can record your preference not to receive unsolicited sales or marketing calls. To register 0800 398893 or www.tpsonline.org.uk
If using a “smart” phone install anti-virus software on it.
3) Keep your computer security programs such as antivirus and firewall, up to date. Also make sure your web browser and operating system are the latest version. If unsure how to do this contact a computer specialist.
Be wary of opening links on unsolicited emails you receive. They may contain viruses or other programs that may harm your computer.
Know how to verify secure web sites if making financial transactions. You can do this by looking at the address line. Normally it will start with http but when you log into a secure site this will change to https. For example http://www.mybank.com is the address of mybank, but if you want to go to the transaction page you log in and the address bar will change to something like https://mybank/login.com The address bar may also change colour. A padlock will appear in either the bottom left or bottom right corner of your browser bar, not on the website.
If you have received an email claiming to be from your bank, asking that you contact them, think about whether or not its genuine. DO NOT click on links in the email, open another window in your browser and visit your banks website using your normal method.
Check online banking security options your bank provides, some offer free anti-virus and browser security software.
Never reveal pin numbers
Never click on links on emails (go the actual website)
Never open attachments unless its from someone you can trust.
