| |
|
Protecting
Yourself |
Criminals commit identity
theft by stealing your personal information. This is often done
by taking documents from your rubbish or by making contact with
you and pretending to be from a legitimate organisation.
Identity theft can result in fraud affecting your personal financial
circumstances, as well as costing government and financial services
millions of pounds a year. If your identity is stolen, you may have difficulty getting loans, credit cards or a mortgage until the matter is sorted out.
The following tips will help you protect your identity and prevent
criminals from committing fraud in your name: |
|
Keep your personal information secure |
|
|
|
Your identity and personal information
are valuable assets. Keep them secure. |
|
|
Regularly obtain a copy of your personal credit
file from one of the three credit reference agencies
to see which financial organisations have accessed your details.
It is particularly helpful to check your personal credit file 2-3
months after you have moved house. |
|
|
Be extra careful if you live in
a property where other people could have access to your mail. In some cases a bank or credit card company could arrange for you to collect valuable items such as new plastic cards or cheque books from a local branch. |
|
|
If you suspect your mail is being
stolen, contact the Royal Mail Customer Enquiry Line: 08457 740
740. Check whether a mail redirection order has been made in
your name without your knowledge. |
|
|
If you move house, tell your bank,
card issuer and all other organisations that you deal with immediately.
Ask the Royal Mail to redirect any mail from your old address to
your new one for at least a year. |
|
|
Consider using the Mailing
Preference Service to limit the amount of unwanted mail you
receive. |
|
|
Keep all your plastic cards safe |
|
|
If your plastic cards are lost
or stolen, cancel them immediately. Keep a note of the emergency
numbers you should call. Further details can be found at the Card Watch
website. |
|
|
When giving your card details
or personal information over the phone, Internet or in a shop, make
sure other people cannot hear or see your personal information.
|
|
|
Never carry documents or plastic
cards unnecessarily. When not in use keep them in a safe place.
|
|
Keep your documents safe |
|
|
Keep your personal documents in
a safe place, preferably in a lockable drawer or cabinet at home.
Consider storing valuable financial documents such as share certificates
with your bank. |
|
|
If your passport or driving
licence has been lost or stolen contact the issuing organisation
immediately. |
|
|
Don't throw away entire bills,
receipts, credit-or debit-card slips, bank statements or even unwanted post in your
name. Destroy unwanted documents, preferably by using a shredder.
|
|
|
Check statements as soon as they
arrive. If any unfamiliar transactions are listed, contact the company
concerned immediately. |
|
| Keep your passwords and PINs safe |
|
|
Never give personal or account details to anyone who contacts you unexpectedly. Be suspicious even if they claim to be from your bank or the police. Ask for their phone number, check it is genuine and, if so, call them back. Be aware that a bank will never ask for your PIN or for a whole security number or password. Keep them secure. |
|
|
Don't use the same password for more than one account and never use banking passwords for any other websites. Using different passwords increases security and makes it less likely that someone could access any other accounts. |
|
|
Keep your passwords safe and never record or store them in a manner which leaves them open to theft, such as in your purse or wallet. |
|
|
If you receive a suspicious e-mail purporting to be from a bona fide institution which requests personal details, click here for advice provided by the banking industry. |
|
|
In addition, the website www.getsafeonline.org gives advice on how to stay safe online when shopping, banking or doing business over the internet, and how to protect your computer and the personal information it contains. This includes advice about how to dispose of unwanted computers. This website has been developed by the Government, police and industry. |
|
|
| Corporate Identity Fraud |
|
|
Companies and their directors can also fall victim to identity fraud. Criminals can seek to commit corporate identity fraud in a variety of different ways, including by fraudulently changing a company’s registered details at Companies House. Companies House has a 3 point plan to help companies protect against corporate identity fraud and safeguard the personal information of their directors. This involves filing information online (WebFiling), signing up to submitting all papers online (PROOF), and subscribing to an alert system that notifies companies when changes to their details are made (Monitor). More information about these services and combating corporate identity fraud can be found at www.companieshouse.gov.uk. |
|
|
Further information for businesses about avoiding scams, including identity theft, can be found at www.businesslink.gov.uk under the “IT and e-commerce” section. |
|
| |
| Protecting the identity of deceased family members |
|
|
Criminals sometimes use the identities of deceased persons to commit fraud, which can be very distressing for those close to the deceased. One way of reducing the chances of this happening is to register with services that remove the deceased’s details from mailing lists. |
|
|
The following websites offer deceased person mail preference services and provide further information on this issue:
The Bereavement Register - http://www.the-bereavement-register.org.uk/
Deceased Preference Service - http://www.deceasedpreferenceservice.co.uk/
Mailing Preference Service - http://www.mpsonline.org.uk/mpsr/ |
|
|
|
