Why You Need Credit Monitor Services

Identity thieves can use your personal information to run up charges on your credit card or even drain your bank account. The reality is that anyone can be a victim. But being prepared can greatly minimize your risk and make it harder for identity thieves to steal your information.

This is where credit monitor services come in as they offer effective protection against identity theft. The following is why you need these services and how you can benefit.

1. Credit Monitoring
Identity thieves use personal information for financial gain. The most obvious sign of identity theft is any suspicious activity on a bank statement or credit report. Examples include charges from unfamiliar companies or new accounts in your name.

This is why you must monitor credit scores. Identity protection services offer credit monitoring and provide alerts for certain changes. You also get regular updates so you can stay on top of your credit score.

2. Identity Monitoring
Most services only offer credit monitoring but the best ones go a step further and monitor your personal information such as your name and social security number. This is particularly beneficial as you receive updates for certain types of activity connected to your information.

3. Personal Assistance
Identity thieves can attack at anytime.

And your credit can take a major hit. In the event that your identity gets stolen, you need to take immediate action but it can be confusing and overwhelming on what steps to take next. So what do you do?

Most credit monitoring services offer personal recovery assistance. What this means is that you get guidance on the steps you should take with your local police and lenders to recover your identity. The added sense of security you get is reason enough to take credit monitoring more seriously.

Some services also offer insurance to cover any expenses that occur as a result of identity theft. The amount typically varies depending on the services you choose. The price you pay for identity theft protection is small compared to the benefits that you get which are all listed here.

Important Steps for Identity Protection

Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in the United States.  How to protect from identity theft is, subsequently, a topic that is getting more and more attention.  You may feel vulnerable and ask yourself, "How do I best protect my identity?"  Here, we will touch on three important steps you can take.

First, be wary of anyone who asks you for sensitive personal information.  It would be highly unusual to be asked for your social security number simply for the purpose of making a purchase.  It would also be quite rare for any reputable organization to ask you for a password to a private site or account.  If you think you are being asked for too much information for a given purpose, be very suspicious.  If a company or other organization calls you on the phone and asks for this kind of information, again, be very careful, even if it is a company with which you regularly do business.  Hang up and call back at the company's regular number and verify whether or not they were attempting to reach you.

Keeping your private documents secure is the second step you can take for identity protection.  Items like your social security card and birth certificate should almost always be locked in in a secure location.  Carry your credit and debit cards only when you think you will need to use them.  Use online security tools such as a firewall and anti-virus and anti-malware software to protect your online identity.  An identity protection service such as Identity Guard® can also provide you with tools like ID Vault® to store your valuable passwords and Privacy Protect® to encrypt your key strokes.

Lastly, monitoring your credit is an important step if you are asking yourself how to protect from identity theft.  While suspicious use of your credit may become apparent to you in time, using Identity Guard as a comprehensive identity monitoring service can alert you even faster.  Identity Guard will send you timely alerts when such activity is detected.  You may choose to receive alerts by phone, email or text message.  A convenient mobile application is also available should you choose to download it to your mobile device.

Following the steps outlined here will be a good line of defense against identity theft and may help you avoid time consuming and frustrating clean ups if you are targeted for this growing crime.

Accessing Effective ID Theft Protection Solutions

Although the media coverage on ID theft may have died down a little over the recent years, the truth is that personal data theft remains just as much of a threat as it ever was. Criminals are consistently gaining new technology that helps them to access people's information more easily than ever, and individuals are forgetting to find ways to protect ID from theft. Today, it can feel as though exploring the online world is enough to open us up to even more forms of vulnerability, as malicious individuals use technology to lure us into releasing our information, and opening ourselves up to future problems. There are so many ways that criminals today can get their hands on your data and ruin your financial life, and credit rating, so what can you do to protect from ID theft?

Start Simple

Sometimes, protecting yourself from the threat of thieves in today's society doesn't have to be as complicated as it may seem. In fact, simply changing a couple of things in your daily routine can be enough to offer you a layer of protection against the threat of criminals. For instance, you might invest in a shredder so that you can destroy any sensitive documents before getting rid of them. On the other hand, you might decide to buy an RFID wallet so that you can stay protected from people who patrol the streets looking to pick up information with high-tech scanners. You might even simply take more care when using your PIN number at a public ATM, or giving your details out on commerce websites.

Another way that you can defend yourself when you're thinking of getting ID theft protection is with credit monitoring.

Monitoring your Credit

Credit monitoring, just like what it suggests, is about watching your credit data on a regular basis. Basically, the service provider will regularly get your information from the credit bureaus, combine them together in a certain way, and look for certain changes. If these changes are detected, the company will send you an alert or a warning, via SMS, a telephone call, or email. This permits you to check whether the changes were indeed due to identity fraud or credit fraud so that you can cancel affected accounts, inform the authorities, and more. The effect is less damage is incurred compared to the situation where you remain unaware for a certain period of time.

Facts on Social Security Identity Theft

Identity theft is on the rise in America, and the most valuable piece of personal information to an identity thief is your social security number.  This is unfortunate, because social security numbers were not originally intended to be used as identifiers, so it comes as no surprise that they are so easily compromised.  They were made to help track how much money people made and to figure out benefit levels – nothing more.  Once a social security number has been compromised, it is a simple thing to use it over and over again.  The card isn’t even necessary – we all know that we are not supposed to carry the card – so banks and hospitals and other companies just ask you to give them the numbers making social security identity theft simple for criminals.

There are things that you can do to reduce the risk that your number will be compromised:

• Don’t carry your social security card in your wallet. Keep it at home and under lock and key.
• Only give the numbers away when absolutely necessary. Ask what they are going to use them for and if anther number will work instead.
• Shred any documents or papers that have the number on them.

Unfortunately, there will be times when you do have to give your social security number away, so you will always be at risk for social security number identity theft.  Statistics on how many social security numbers have already been compromised vary greatly – but one thing is certain: the number is alarmingly large.  There is a good chance that you have already received notification from a company informing you of a data breach that included your social security number, but even if you have not, you should be on guard.  The destruction that can be caused by social security number identity theft can be lasting and very difficult to clean up.  The most important step in detecting social security number identity theft is monitoring your credit report.  When someone uses your social security number to open a new credit account, it will show up on your report, and the sooner you know about the theft and dispute the fraud, the better.

Monitor Credit Score: Reasons Why You Should

Lenders look closely at credit scores to assess creditworthiness.

A high score greatly increases your chances of getting approved for credit. But what happens if an identity thief gains access to your personal information and wreaks havoc on your score? Millions of consumers in the US are faced with this reality every year and it could just as easily happen to you.

Which is why you need to take efforts to monitor credit score. Here are several reasons why.

1. It Costs Nothing
You can request a copy of your free credit report from the major credit bureaus once a year. It takes little effort to do so but can reveal a lot about your financial health. This is particularly beneficial especially if you plan on applying for a mortgage or other loan.

2. Can Reveal Identity Theft
Identity theft is a rampant problem that affects millions of consumers every year. Checking your credit report can reveal indications that you are a victim of identity theft. For example, if you see any suspicious activity or new accounts you may have had your identity stolen.

Taking steps immediately can greatly reduce any damage to your credit. Consider investing in a credit score monitoring service to automatically keep tabs on your credit.

3. Identifies Potential Errors
Any errors on your report could negatively affect your score and affect your ability to secure credit. Which is yet another reason for monitoring credit score. If your score takes a huge dip and you have always been on time with your payments, you know right away that something is wrong.

Knowing this means you can take immediate steps to submit disputes and remove any errors on your credit report. Clearing any errors can even help improve your credit score in the long run so it is well worth the effort.

Your credit score is an important part of your finances. Take steps to periodically review it by requesting a free credit report from the major credit bureaus. This will allow you to identify any signs of identity theft and even fix potential errors.

Should you be using a Credit Monitor?

Anyone can be a victim of identity theft, but there are certain things that may make people more likely targets and these people should be especially vigilant and use a credit monitor.

Senior Citizens

There are many reasons why seniors are often targeted:

• They are more likely to own their home and to have money saved up.
• They may not be as familiar with the internet and other technology, making them more susceptible to online scams.
• Often, older generations were raised to be more polite than younger ones, making it more difficult for them to just say no when a scammer calls.

An automatic credit monitor can help protect senior citizens.  They may not realize that their personal information has been stolen, but if there are any new accounts or other suspicious changes to their credit report, they will be notified.

Those going through a divorce or other breakup.

You usually think of identity theft as being committed by a stranger, but people you know can be the perpetrators too.  You are especially at risk when going through a divorce or other breakup.  These people usually have easy access to the personal information stored in your home, they may know your passwords to access your electronic information, and they may even have information memorized.  They can be driven by the desperation of their change in situation, or they may have a desire for revenge or to hurt you.  An automatic credit monitor can help thwart their plans.  You may also want to take additional steps, such as changing all of your passwords and security questions.

Children

Children are attractive targets to identity thieves because of their clean credit history.  Child ID theft can be especially devastating because it may not be discovered until the child is old enough to need to apply for financing.  By then, the theft could have been going on for years, making it very difficult to resolve.  Many automatic credit monitors offer family plans so you can ensure that your children are protected.

Problems with Identity Theft Protection

It appears that we are losing the battle against identity theft.  Thieves are constantly coming up with new ways to steal your information and to ways to use it for their own gain.  It is not as simple as just trying to steal the money in your bank account anymore, they can open lines of credit to steal money that you don’t even have, steal your benefits, your good reputation, medical care, and your tax refund.  Why are we failing at identity theft protection and what can you do to minimize your risk?

The most valuable piece of information to an identity thief is social security number.  Social security number combined with your name allows thieves to open lines of credit, apply for jobs, steal money from bank accounts and more.  Perhaps why this has become so commonplace is that social security numbers were not intended to be used as identifiers, so it is no surprise that they are so easily compromised.  Early social security cards even said right on the card “Not for identification,” they were never intended to help protect from identity theft.  When the IRS started using social security numbers for identification in the 1960s, banks and other organizations followed their example, and that is how social security numbers became so valuable today.

Once a thief obtains your social security number, it easy to reproduce over and over again.  Someday, we may see identifiers that are not so easily compromised through the use of fingerprint or iris scanners.  As this technology becomes more reliable and less expensive, we are already seeing it more in our everyday lives.  Many mobile devices can be unlocked with a fingerprint or can be set up to require a fingerprint before you can make purchases.

For now, we are still relying on social security number as our main identifiers, so one of the most important ways to protect from identity theft is to monitor your credit report.  You can try to do this yourself with your yearly free credit reports, or use a credit monitoring service to do the work for you and give you more complete protection.  Once your social security number has been compromised, it can be used over and over again so monitoring your credit report is the fastest way to detect and protect from identity theft.

Credit Monitoring Services can be your Edge over Identity Thieves

If you were a victim of identity theft, would you rather find out by being turned down for a job or a loan that you really needed, or by a text message alerting you to the theft as soon as it happens so that you can take action immediately?  The obvious correct answer is the latter, and it is easier to do than you may think.  Credit monitoring services can keep an eye on your credit report for you and alert you to new accounts or other suspicious information.  Here is what to look for when shopping for services monitoring credit.

Monitoring

The best services monitoring credit will monitor your credit report from all three credit bureaus, and do so at least monthly.  Your score can vary from each bureau, and a fraudulent account may have only been reported to one.  The more often they check all three bureaus, the sooner you will discover and can take action to dispute identity theft.

Services monitoring credit should also monitor the internet to identify if your information is being traded illegally, and your public records to alert you to any suspicious information and remove outdated information.

Choose services monitoring credit that allow you to choose to receive your alerts by phone, text or email so you can be sure to receive them as soon as possible.

Recovery Assistance

Services monitoring credit will not only alert you to suspicious activity, but they can help guide you through getting the incorrect information removed from your credit history.  This can be a complicated, multi-step process, so having an expert in your corner is a huge advantage.

Additional Services

Services monitoring credit often offer additional service too, such as:

• Lost wallet protection. Cancels your credit cards for you if they are lost or stolen and notifies creditors to be on guard for suspicious activity.
• Mail list removal. Contacts marketing mailing lists to request that your contact information no longer be used.
• Computer security. Software such as anti-virus and password managers to help protect your computer.

Using A Password Vault To Secure Your Online Presence

Passwords and usernames make up a common and exhaustive part of our modern-day lives. We use passwords to log onto our computers at work, to access our emails, and even to check out our favorite websites. Unfortunately, the more passwords we're forced to remember, the more likely we are to become lazy in terms of security and imagination. Indeed, a lot of people will choose to use the same password for a number of different resources. This is something that may seem convenient, but is actually dangerous.

Think about it this way, if a hacker manages to access at least one of your accounts, then chances are that they can also breach just about any of the websites that you use every day. Unfortunately, memorizing a series of long and complicated passwords is not something that most of us are capable of doing. So how do we keep ourselves safe online? The answer may be in the use of password vaults.

The Nature of This Security Tool

Utilizing highly imaginative and strong passwords for each of your login credentials to online sites is incredibly important today, as it helps to reduce the chances of a person becoming the victim of a hacker. The more advanced and difficult to remember your password is, the more protected you are.

However, this is a problem for you, when you have so many different codes to remember. Password vaults can help by storing all of your different access credentials in a single highly-protected file. This file, or vault, will then only be able to be accessed when you enter a "Master Password".

Without the master password, all of the key information stored within a vault will remain encrypted and, therefore, impossible for any person to read. If you're wondering how to define the importance of a password vault, the best way to look at it is that they give you an opportunity to come up with infinitely difficult and impossible to guess passwords for all of your accounts. At the same time, you only have to memorize a single, albeit complicated password key. This is generally much safer than using the same easy password over and over again.

Identity Theft Protection for You

People use the internet to do your banking, go shopping, find the next place to eat, connect with friends, and even... steal identities. Identity thieves use the internet to steal millions of peoples' identities every year. Along with cyber-theft, identity theft by means of pick-pocketing and other physical theft still exist. The truth is, you will never be 100% safe from identity theft, even after you die! Regardless of these risks, there are still good practices that can be used everyday to increase your identity theft protection.

Monitor Your Credit

Monitoring your credit can help uncover fraudulent transactions that are happening at your expense. As an American, you are entitled to three free credit reports each year, one from each of the three major credit bureaus. Use the free reports to uncover fraudulent activity before it can cause sizable damage to your personal or financial reputation.

Don't Bank or Shop on Public Wi-Fi

Public Wi-Fi can be accessed by anyone, and there is a good chance that you are not aware of everyone who is on the network with you. Cyber-criminals may be monitoring your information, so make sure that you don't deliver anything valuable to them. Your login credentials to your banking, or your credit card information for example, are things that you do not want to uncover while using public Wi-Fi.

Get the Help of Professionals

Professional services like Identity Guard identity theft protection can help you protect from identity theft. This service has been available for consumer use for nearly two decades, and can be used to help monitor, protect, and recover your personal information. To find out it Identity Guard is a good fit for your identity theft protection needs, visit them today!

The Need For Password Manager Reviews

A substantial percentage of our daily lives is now being spend online. We are constantly signed in to social media, and we also have online banking, pay our bills online, and do our shopping online. For each of these things, we need to create accounts with strong passwords, and we're supposed to memorize the passwords as well. In reality, however, people tend to use the same, easy-to-remember password for each of the sites. Unfortunately, this is a bad practice and is the reason why people should consider signing up for a password manager.

What Are Password Managers?

These are essentially online safes in which you store and create unique and complex passwords. The only password you need to remember is the one that unlocks this particular software. However, this also means that you are putting your faith in the safety and security of this particular software. Just as you would with anything else in which you store valuable information, you should make an effort to find the best one. This is achieved by looking at passwords manager reviews.

What to Look for in Reviews

Naturally, when checking out a review password manager software should be examined with regards to the safety and security that it provides. If someone were to hack the site, will they immediately be able to see all your login details for all your different accounts? Secondly, when making a password manager comparison, you should also look at ease of use. It is now possible to find password managers that can help you to create unique and complex passwords, which is a really useful tool as these are completely random. Finally, look into whether or not the software will autofill any fields in the forms for you, and whether you are automatically redirected to the manager whenever you create an account somewhere.

Password managers are incredibly useful tools. If you do not want to sign up for one, however, you should still employ common sense when creating passwords. They should not contain your date of birth or house number, nor your mother in law's maiden name, for instance. Create something unique at all times.