09 Protect Yourself with Internet Safety
The FACTS:
- 2 million adult Internet users experience Internet identity fraud annually - 5,479 a day!
- 9% of identity theft information is obtained online.
PHISHING E-mail: is the act of sending an E-mail to a user falsely, claiming to be an established legitimate enterprise in an effort to steal the user's personal information.
- 3.8 days is the average life span of a phishing Web site.
TAKE ACTION TODAY
- Create a password that has a combination of upper and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols for unlocking your computer and for accessing Web sites. Use a different password for each site.
- NEVER use an automatic log-in feature that saves your username and password.
- Always log off the Internet or your computer when you're finished.
- Avoid storing financial information on your computer.
- Use anti virus, spyware and a firewall
- DO NOT OPEN E-mails sent to you by strangers
- Forward spam that is phishing for information to spam@uce.gov and to the company, bank or organization impersonated in the phishing E-mail.
- Order a credit report every 12 months
YOU MATTER
The emotional impact of the Interent identity fraud has been found to parallel that of victims of violent crime. Remain cyber-safe by protecting your computer as if it were your wallet. Practice SAFE surfing. You'll be glad you did.
My husband experienced identity theft last summer. The banks and credit card companies have been very responsive but just dealing with it had been exhausting. Right after the first incident we signed up for LifeLock. $110 a year is a small price to pay for what could be potentially stolen. And at the same time it has cut our junk mail completely down!
UPDATE: There has been some speculation about whether or not LifeLock can live up to claims. We are still signed up and so far they have protected us.
