Pre–Approved Credit Offers Can Increase Your Risk Becoming an Identity Theft Victim
Keep Track of Pre–approved Credit Card Offers: ID Thieves Are on the Prowl
Courtesy of Credit.PrivacyMatters.comSM
Whenever you go to your mailbox, there's always the chance that a pre–approved credit card offer will be waiting there for you. And while you might be conditioned to just throw out that credit card offer with the rest of the "junk mail," hold that thought a minute. While pre–approved credit cards may be a dime a dozen, the idea that an identity thief can use those offers against you is anything but "trash talk."
It's been said time and again that identity theft is a crime of opportunity — that perhaps more than any other type of thief, an identity thief knows how to use the carelessness of others to his advantage. And while there are warnings to fight online identity theft seemingly everywhere you turn, the fact remains that mail theft can be equally damaging.
Postal inspectors throughout the U.S. must deal with investigations ranging from identity thieves ripping off individual mailboxes to more elaborate mail theft crimes involving stolen mail trucks to instances where people impersonate postal personnel — even stealing uniforms to support a well–devised identity theft plan. So while some people may finally be wising up to the dangers of identity theft on the Internet, keep in mind that every day, identity thieves get nearly 700 million different chances to commit some form of mail identity theft — translating to over 210 billion different mail theft opportunities every year.
What can I do to guard against ID theft associated with pre–approved credit card offers?
There are a lot of different ways to be proactive in preventing identity theft, and dealing with the glut of pre–approved credit card offers should afford you ample practice. Here are a few things to watch out for when those pre–approved offers start to come in:
- Don't throw pre–approved credit offers out — either opened or unopened. Remember that the term "dumpster diver" isn't meant to describe someone down on his luck, scavenging for tin cans and the like. In fact, dumpster divers are like many enterprising identity thieves — opportunists who wait around for you to get careless with personal information. If you just throw those offers out, anyone can pick them up and collect your personal information — sort of like a free, winning lottery ticket. Obviously not every credit card offer will be right for you, but haphazardly throwing out these pre–approved credit card offers sends a simple message to identity thieves: "Go ahead... steal me."
- Practice paper shredding. It pays to do some research, but you can get a paper shredder for as little as $20. And protecting your personal information is worth a lot more than that. Studies indicate that over 6,000 banks and other financial institutions offer credit cards in the U.S. alone.3 And most of those organizations look for prospects by accessing individual financial records, which is perfectly legal and well within their rights. But here's the catch — and the potential danger to you: Those with good credit histories are usually sent numerous pre–approved credit card offers, as are plenty of those with less–than–stellar credit scores. In all cases, those pre–approved offers contain sensitive personal and financial information. After all, just because those credit offers are unsolicited doesn't mean that the enclosed financial information didn't come from a reliable source — like a credit reporting agency. Bottom line: Pre–approved credit card offers contain information that identity thieves want. But if you shred that information properly and don't get careless, you do give yourself a much better chance of preventing identity theft.
- Organize your snail mail. Along the lines of disposing of pre–approved credit card offers properly, it may also pay to organize your mail — especially your junk mail. Misplacing or losing those credit card offers that you may actually want — or at least want to read over — can be just as bad as not disposing of them properly. Either way, an identity thief can get that financial information, and then where will you be? If you do not wish to receive pre–approved credit offers, you can asked to be removed from the list and stop them from getting into your mailbox. Consumers can either write a letter to the three major credit bureaus —Equifax, TransUnion and Experian — or use an automated service (1–888–5–OPTOUT) that the credit bureaus employ.
- Become familiar with an identity theft report. Much like a credit report, an identity theft report contains your personal and financial history. Companies like Privacy Matters offer an identity theft report as part of their core benefits, designed to protect your personal information and your peace of mind. Staying proactive is a key to preventing identity theft, and an identity theft report, along with identity theft and credit monitoring, offers you several different weapons to stay in the fight.
For all the complaining we do about the sheer worthlessness of junk mail, it seems ironic that such random mailings can lead to real identity theft problems. Make sure you know the risks. If you choose to disregard unsolicited offers for pre–approved credit cards and other junk mail, be sure to dispose of them properly. After all, there's nothing quite as opportunistic as an identity thief, especially one who has your personal and financial information right in his hands.
So while stopping identity theft may be somewhat easier for prosecutors moving forward, there is still a lot left to be done. It will take a lot to turn the turn the tables on identity thieves, but it's still possible. And you can do your part by doing everything you can to keep your personal information safe.
