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WHAT: With the Federal Trade Commission’s latest report showing identity theft as the No. 1 complaint by consumers, protecting your identity and safeguarding your personal information is especially important during tax season.  Here are some tips from Identity Theft 911 to help consumers protect themselves against tax return and identity fraud:

eFile-ers:

AVOID SOLICITATIONS

• The IRS never communicates via e-mail.
• If you receive an e-mail claiming to be from the IRS, forward it to phishing@irs.gov .
• Avoid following links in e-mail and banner ads. Be on the lookout for scams and offers that are too good to be true. Tax time is prime time for scams.

KNOW YOUR TAX PREPARER

• Beware of imposter eFile Web sites.  They are rapidly increasing, appear to be legitimate and can cause serious complications.  Be sure to go directly to your tax preparer’s Web site.
• Almost 98 million Americans are expected to e-file this year. Review your personal information for misuse.

PROTECT YOUR COMPUTER

• Use strong user names and passwords whenever conducting financial transactions online.
• Keep hackers from stealing your information. Install a firewall, virus protection software and keep it updated, keep administrative names and passwords updated, set wireless networks to “no broadcast ” and use encryption. Be sure to power down your computer when not in use.
• Do not store your tax information on your computer.  Store sensitive information on an encrypted or password-protect external drive or disk and keep it secured.
• Avoid disposing of or donating computers that contain your past tax information. Use software tools that delete secure data.

Paper-filers:

CAREFULLY CHOOSE YOUR TAX PREPARER

• Many fraud rings front as tax preparation companies who may steal personal information, redirect your return, or offer to fraudulently review your returns for inaccuracies.
• Research your preparer with the Better Business Bureau and IRS Office of Professional Responsibility to verify the status of their license.
• Be aware of telephone scams as well.

REVIEW YOUR RETURNS

• Paid preparers are required to sign your return and complete all preparer sections requesting their ID number.
• Never sign a blank or incomplete return.

All Taxpayers

WATCH FOR YOUR STATEMENT OF EARNINGS

• Your annual Social Security Statement with its taxable earnings record will identify all individuals working in the United States under your Social Security Number.  You should receive it approximately three months before your birthday.
• Monitor your mailbox and look out for W-2s, 1099s and other official tax forms.

PROTECT YOUR TAX DOCUMENTS

• Mail your returns from a USPS office via certified mail.
• Opt for direct deposit of tax returns to avoid lost/stolen refund checks.
• Safely store all tax-related documents including your paystubs, W-2s and tax returns in a secured location such as a safe deposit box or immobile safe.

REVIEW YOUR CREDIT REPORT

• Examine your credit report and monitor your accounts to ensure they are not being used to purchase goods or services in your name.

DON’T WAIT UNTIL THE LAST MINUTE TO FILE YOUR RETURN

For more information, contact the IRS Identity Protection Specialized Unit at 1-800-908-4490.

http://www.irs.gov/privacy/article/0,,id=186436,00.html

For more information about how to safeguard their identities in general and during tax season, consumers should visit www.identitytheft911.org.

About Identity Theft 911

Protecting more than 30 million Americans, Identity Theft 911 is a leader in identity management and identity theft remediation and resolution services to businesses and consumers on behalf of its 450 client institutions, as well as in comprehensive data breach preparedness (including incidence response plans), compliance, and notification and remediation services that are currently found in more than 150,000 businesses. Visit www.identitytheft911.com for more information.

(Logo:  http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20031122/SFSA001LOGO)

SOURCE Identity Theft 911

Read more: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/identity-theft-911-offers-tips,1189432.shtml#ixzz0hAI85liI

Identity theft has become a serious problem over recent years, not only in the UK but also in other countries all around the world. Whilst increasingly sophisticated technology has helped to create more security for consumers it is also obvious that the identity thieves themselves are becoming more and more sophisticated in the methods that they use to commit this sort of crime, and this means that they are able to keep up with the times and continue committing this type of fraud no matter how secure consumers seem to think that they are.

Becoming the victim of identity theft can have many repercussions, and the recipients of this type of crime have to put up with stress, frustration, and even financial losses. However, there are some steps that consumers can take to reduce the risk of becoming a victim of identity theft, and providing consumers are more vigilant and careful when it comes to their personal information it is possible to prevent this type of crime.

One of the things that can help you to better monitor your finances and check on whether you may be a victim or attempted or successful identity fraud is checking your credit file on a regular basis. By doing this you will be able to see whether there is anything untoward, and you can quickly identify and address an suspicious activity which could help to reduce the risk of you becoming a victim of this sort of crime.

You can order your credit report with ease online these days, so checking your financial information will prove to be no hassle and could really help to save you from the hassle and stress of becoming a victim of identity fraud.

Another thing to remember is that identity thieves do not always use the most sophisticated methods, and in fact they are able to get hold of the information that they need by something as simple s going through your rubbish bag. This is why it is so important not to just throw away paperwork that contains financial and personal details in the waste paper basket, and this includes bills, bank and credit card statements, and any other documentation that may contain sensitive information that can be used by ID thieves to commit their crime.

You also need to be very careful about where and when you dish out personal information that could lead to ID theft. For example, if you have a computer that is shared with other people you should never save password and account details, as these could easily be hacked. Similarly you should ensure that you never link to a website from an email, as this is a scam that is known as phishing, and these emails – although they may claim to be from your bank or another trusted source – link you to a fake website, and once you enter your details they are freely available for the fraudsters to access and use.

Even giving out personal and financial details on the phone can prove dodgy, unless you are the one that has made the phone call. If you receive a call from someone that claims to be from your bank or credit card firm, and asks you to confirm your account details, always exercise caution, as this is not some thing that banks do. If in doubt take the name of the caller and ring the company back to make sure that it is your bank or credit card provider, as otherwise you could end up giving your card and personal details to a complete stranger.

Magensa’s QwicKey offers passwordmanagement and form-filling with a unique type of two-factor authentication. You protect your data with a master password, of course, but you must also swipe one of your credit cards through the supplied reader to finish unlocking the data. You can register as many credit cards (or other mag-stripe cards) as you like. It’s a nice product, and the updates they’ve made merit a new review.

But the Magensa product that wowed me today was iDynamo with QwickPay. It’s a “jacket” that plugs into the bottom of youriPhone and turns it into a device for securely handling credit card transactions.

Magensa CEO Mimi Hart demonstrated the device. An app on the iPhone accepts encrypted swipe data from the reader and communicates with the central office, quickly returning a message indicating that the card was or wasn’t accepted. Like QwicKey, iDynamo includes Magensa’s MagnePrint technology. Briefly, the magnetic stripe isn’t just data but actually has a unique “fingerprint.” MagnePrint technology enables the reader to distinguish the original card from a copy cloned by a skimmer.