Useful identity theft tips for victims of the Target security breach. Most people know that their identity and personal information can be stolen electronically as well as by paper.

Here are a few Identity theft tips that could save guard your identity from unscrupulous people and sources.

Identity theft tips

1. You should monitor your credit history or your profile. You need to ensure that someone is not using your information to acquire loan or credit.
2. You should download software from sources that are reputable. Do not download programs or open files that you don’t have much information on.
3. It is advisable to go out and purchase a paper shredder. A paper shredder can be used to shred all of your financial documents that would have been normally lying around your house. This would prevent your paper document from being dumped in your garbage where anyone can have access to it.
4. You should never store important information such as your social security number or your credit card number on your Computer. If this is done your information would be exposed to hackers who are in the business of stealing identity.
5. You should make it a priority to create a separate and unique password for every website that requires you to register. You should also create separate passwords for all your email accounts. A criminal can easily hack into your email address and your online accounts to retrieve your personal information. Having password security is important since it is a tool that would safeguard your accounts by keeping your accounts secure.
6. You should shop at websites that are reputable.  There are some websites that stores your credit card information and steal money from it, more than enough that is needed for your purchase. You should be on your guard at all times when you are giving out your credit card information online. There are also some individuals who hack into these online stores database to steal your card information. There are ways to find out if these sites are safe. One way is through the Web of Trust.
7. Only conduct business with online stores and financial entities that you can trust, that are also popular which means that they have a lot of consumers. There are also numerous fake sites replicating the logo of popular sites. You should be mindful of that. You should find out if you are dealing with the right site or not. The fake sites will take your money without producing anything that you have ordered.
8. There are some marking that you should look for when you are in the process of providing your personal information online. The URL should begin with https://. There should be a closed padlock icon located at the lower right of the browser.
9. You should never share your password with anyone. Even though that person might be a family member or a close acquaintance.
10. 10.  You should never make anyone be aware of your ATM PIN. This is can lead to your bank account being emptied out without your consent.

11. If you have ordered new check books, it is advisable that you pick up the book at the banks locations instead of it being sent in the mail. Check books and checks are easily stolen. Therefore it is best to safeguard yourself.

12. It is best to use a secure mailbox at the Post Office. A mailbox that requires a key or some type of codes. You just can’t trust everyone. Even the Postal Worker could steal your identity. As soon as your mail has arrived you should move promptly to the Post Office to retrieve your mail. This is a smart way of protecting identity.

13. In the event that the mail man is delivering your mail, you should advise him not  to leave your mail in the mail box or on the porch. There are some people who targets mail boxes for your private information. The mail man should be advised not to give anyone else your mails and to take them back with him to the Post Office if you are not at home.

14.  Try to stay away from messages that are constantly appearing in the spam folder. Do not click or open them if they seem or appear to be suspicious.

15.  If you have received an email that requires you to update your personal information, it is advisable that you do not reply to them.

16. In regards to Internet identity security, you should never leave your computer unattended. This is more important when you are conducting online business with an investing service or on a online banking website.

17. Never leave your computer unattended while you are using a public computer to conduct your financial transactions. Public Computers are in a Coffee shops or the library. Anyone can easily take a peek at what you are doing and write off your important financial information and use it to their advantage.

18. After you have completed your online financial business, you should always completely log off your and if possible shut down your browser.

19. It is imperative that you do not divulge too much of your information when you are dealing with social media. The general public should not know everything about you. Your phone number should even be off limits. Whenever you are updating your status, you should never indicate that you are at a particular bank since this will tell the hacker the name of the bank that you join. You should also try to change your password on a regular basis since social media sites are easily hacked.

20. You should create a password that is not easily hacked by criminals.