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Protect Your Identity

Phishers and other online thieves are targeting your money and personal data--and they're getting sneakier. Here's how to defend yourself, and how to erase the damage if you get scammed.

Bob Tedeschi

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Security Tips: How to Keep Identity Thieves at Bay

  • Don't click on links or images in unsolicited e-mail.
    • If a company with which you do business asks you to contact it, open a new browser window, type in the company's Web address, and log in to your account. Otherwise, call the company.

  • Use a good spam filter.
    • With the right filter, phishing e-mail messages may never even reach your inbox. Check out our list of top antispam tools in " Spam-Proof Your Inbox" from the June issue.

  • Install spyware detection software.
    • Lavasoft's Ad-Aware and Spybot Search & Destroy have versions that are free for personal and noncommercial use. These programs ranked at the top of their class in our June security superguide, " Bigger Threats, Better Defense."

  • Consider a credit monitoring service from one of the major credit bureaus.
    • For $44 per year, for instance, TransUnion's Identity Fraud Watch service sends weekly e-mail notices reporting changes to your credit profile. Equifax and Experian cost a bit more--$100 and $120, respectively--but they also give you access to your credit reports. Consumers in California and Texas can also request a "credit freeze," whereby potential creditors access your credit report only with your authorization. (Each time you open your credit report to a potential creditor, it costs $8 per agency, and another $10 to freeze the report again.)

  • Review your credit card charges.
    • Fraudsters will often make small charges over a period of time to avoid detection.

  • Keep credit card information and so forth off your computer's hard drive.
    • Store such data on CD-RWs instead--and keep the discs out of your drive when you're not using them so hackers can't get at the data. If you must keep such data on your drive, protect it with something like Password Agent, which has a free limited version and costs only $20 for an unlimited version.

  • Keep your Social Security number as private as possible.
    • If companies use it as part of your account number or ID card, request that the number be changed (but note that the companies are not obligated to make this modification).

  • Get a credit report twice a year.
    • As of December, federal law entitles consumers to one free, yearly report.

    B.T.

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