I'd like to know how best to prevent and/or discover Identity theft before it happens or as it may occurThanX!

Question

I really wonder specifically whether my bank with it's protections (and fine print) has a better likelihood of preventing fraud or do the Experians of the world provide a quicker way of determining this>

Answer 1

Check your credit report -- spread the free annual report from each bureau thru the year. Don't give out your social security number and review credit card and bank statements monthly.

If you are asking about a monitoring service, save your money. It's really a waste.

Answer 2

There really is no surefire way to prevent identity theft. There are things you can do to better protect yourself:

1. Be dilligent about protecting your personal information. Be wary of providing personal information (i.e. social security number, driver license number, mother's maiden name, etc.) over the phone or online if you cannot verify who is collecting this information.

2. Do not carry unnecessary credit/debit cards, social security cards, and other identifying information in your purse, wallet, etc. This way if you ever lose your purse/wallet, you minimize the information that someone could have access to.

3. Shred mail and other documents that include personal information, account numbers, etc. when you need to discard it. This includes credit card offers that you may receive in the mail, as well as bank statements, credit card statements, etc.

4. Check your credit reports regularly to verify that the information is correct. If you notice new accounts which you did not open, notify the credit bureaus immediately. You can check each of the 3 major credit reports once per year at no charge. The easiest way to do this is by visiting http://www.annualcreditreport.com. Some people advise checking one report every four months so that you can check it throughout the year. This is fine, but bear in mind that the information reported may vary from one bureau to the next. This is because not every creditor reports to all three bureaus.

These are some basic and simple ways to protect yourself. They are by no means the only ways. Search online at reputable websites for other ideas. Http://www.bankrate.com has lot of useful information on the subject, as well as http://www.ftc.gov/credit.