Identity Theft

Posted on 3 Jan 2006 at 16:59

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Mail intuition

If you move house, you should set up mail redirection with Royal Mail, as well as notifying every company with which you have an account. Don't forget store cards, car recovery services and other companies that you might not deal with on a weekly or monthly basis. Royal Mail told us that in 2004 around 200 million letters were delivered to old addresses. It also touted its new, free service at www.iammoving.com, which allows you to inform companies and other organisations when and where you're moving.

Security minded

Store important documents in a lockable filing cabinet or document box. If you must throw away statements, bills and receipts, shred them first. The same goes for expired credit and debit cards.

Keep the minimum number of cards in your wallet or purse. Should you lose it or have it stolen, you will have fewer cancellation calls to make and thieves will have less personal information to abuse.

When using a card in an ATM, keep an eye out for skimming devices. If in doubt, move on to an alternative cash machine or risk having crooks clone your card. When paying by credit card in shops and restaurants, try to keep an eye on your card when it is processed for payment. It should be swiped just once, and only on the till or a portable chip and PIN device.

Finally, don't store PINs on bits of paper in your wallet. If you are worried that you'll forget your number, try adding a false name and number to the contact list in your mobile phone. If you have a Barclaycard with the PIN of 1234 you could store a contact called (for example) Steve Barclay on 01762 841234. It's a good enough memo and, if you are unlucky enough to have both cards and phone stolen, the thief won't be able to jog up to a cashpoint straight away.

Author: Simon Edwards

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