I'm sure you'll all be pleased to know that even during these times of the credit crunch there is still one industry enjoying a growth period, unfortunately, it's Identity Theft ... the easiest way for fraudsters to blight your life and stress you still further!
So how do you combat the risks of having your identity stolen? This is not just people copying your clothes and hairstyle, they want a quick and easy way to profit from your financial and business data, your NHS number, your Passport details, your bank account and savings information, even your pension plan.
Are you aware for example how easily somebody could obtain a copy of your birth certificate or even a copy of you bank account details? Unfortunately the answer is far too easy.
Basic precautions are easy to put in place and on the most part they should be simple common sense. If you are like most households you probably receive far too much junk mail and possibly put it straight into the bin with out prior thought, even pre-completed credit card applications!
The risk of identity theft is not restricted to the realms of paper documents though, tour internet habits can also leave you exposed. Personally I find it amazing that we can be expected to remember so many different password and user combinations without writing them down. I find this hard but many people will use the same one. It may be only one password for you to remember, likewise there's only one for the identity thieves to find, isn't there?
Un-shredded paperwork and internet activity is not the only way an unscrupulous operator will get hold of your information though. With so much information being held on computer hard drives, pen drives and mobile phones sometimes these are areas of easy pickings for the Identity thief or even random opportunist.
It is much easier than you think for a computer technician to recover your details from your hard drive, even when you think you have deleted them. Or for a data recovery expert to recover the deleted partition when you formatted or wiped them off with free software; after all a data recovery company can recover your information even if it's a few months out of date.
Many people are unaware of the availability of hard drive shredding or secure data disposal services that reputable companies offer. Drives can be literally shredded into tiny pieces or if you are a firm believer in recycling you can arrange for your drive to be securely wiped and certified and the certain components can be used for repair or failed drive re-builds.
So how do you combat the risks of having your identity stolen? This is not just people copying your clothes and hairstyle, they want a quick and easy way to profit from your financial and business data, your NHS number, your Passport details, your bank account and savings information, even your pension plan.
Are you aware for example how easily somebody could obtain a copy of your birth certificate or even a copy of you bank account details? Unfortunately the answer is far too easy.
Basic precautions are easy to put in place and on the most part they should be simple common sense. If you are like most households you probably receive far too much junk mail and possibly put it straight into the bin with out prior thought, even pre-completed credit card applications!
The risk of identity theft is not restricted to the realms of paper documents though, tour internet habits can also leave you exposed. Personally I find it amazing that we can be expected to remember so many different password and user combinations without writing them down. I find this hard but many people will use the same one. It may be only one password for you to remember, likewise there's only one for the identity thieves to find, isn't there?
Un-shredded paperwork and internet activity is not the only way an unscrupulous operator will get hold of your information though. With so much information being held on computer hard drives, pen drives and mobile phones sometimes these are areas of easy pickings for the Identity thief or even random opportunist.
It is much easier than you think for a computer technician to recover your details from your hard drive, even when you think you have deleted them. Or for a data recovery expert to recover the deleted partition when you formatted or wiped them off with free software; after all a data recovery company can recover your information even if it's a few months out of date.
Many people are unaware of the availability of hard drive shredding or secure data disposal services that reputable companies offer. Drives can be literally shredded into tiny pieces or if you are a firm believer in recycling you can arrange for your drive to be securely wiped and certified and the certain components can be used for repair or failed drive re-builds.
About the Author:
About the author: Mike White is a technology enthusiast with a keen interest in business computing, Raid Data Recovery, Raid Recovery consumer electronics and design and technology trends. Grab a totally unique version of this article from the Uber Article Directory
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