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Mail boxes increasingly an open door to identity theft
By VAL CLIFTON
Some thieves see mail boxes as their own personal banks.
The US Postal Service is receiving more than 45 million change-of-address forms each year, said Tami Nealy, a certified expert and the Director of Public Affairs for LifeLock.
These forms allow criminals to divert mail for fraudulent credit lines from the victim’s home, and can help them gain access to documents, including paychecks and social security benefit information.
“Obviously with a quantity that high, there are bound to be some addresses that slip through the cracks, and some that are mismatched or aren’t accurate,” Nealy said.
LifeLock, a personal identity protection company, commonly hears concerns from their customers of stolen mail, especially when it’s time to pay Uncle Sam.
“During tax time, several people said someone got to their mailbox and took a portion their W-2 forms that had their social security number, name and address,” said Nealy. “These identity thieves knew that this information was coming in the mail to every American and that’s a time of year that people are more vulnerable.”
According to Nealy, The Federal Trade Commission estimates that it takes between 177 and 300 hours over the course of two years to clean up personal information after becoming a victim of identity theft.
“People are taking time off from their work and family to fix the situation in which they were just a victim and didn’t do anything wrong,” Nealy said. “A lot of our members have been victims of identity theft and they don’t want to have to worry about having to go through the process again.”
To alleviate stress for the customers, once a week, LifeLock’s checks the address forms filed at the Postal Service to see if there is a match for any of their members. If a change hasn’t been reported by the client, the company contacts them to find out if fraud has been committed, or if they simply forgot to update the information.
In addition, LifeLock’s eRecon service searches websites to see if their clients’ personal information is being traded.
“If any of our members becomes victims of identity theft while they’re with life lock, we’ll do all the remediation and spend what is necessary, up to $1 million, to get you where you were before you became a victim of identity theft,” Nealy said.
There are several things that consumers can do on their own to protect themselves, Nealy said, including placing a fraud alert with the credit bureau, opting out pre-approved credit card offers and staying on top of annual credit reports.
Nealy said the biggest risk consumers face is the various third parties that receive their information.
“Anytime we give it to someone else, we don’t know how they’re protecting it,” Nealy said.
Visit website www.lifelock.com or call 877-LIFELOCK to sign up.
The US Postal Service is receiving more than 45 million change-of-address forms each year, said Tami Nealy, a certified expert and the Director of Public Affairs for LifeLock.
These forms allow criminals to divert mail for fraudulent credit lines from the victim’s home, and can help them gain access to documents, including paychecks and social security benefit information.
“Obviously with a quantity that high, there are bound to be some addresses that slip through the cracks, and some that are mismatched or aren’t accurate,” Nealy said.
LifeLock, a personal identity protection company, commonly hears concerns from their customers of stolen mail, especially when it’s time to pay Uncle Sam.
“During tax time, several people said someone got to their mailbox and took a portion their W-2 forms that had their social security number, name and address,” said Nealy. “These identity thieves knew that this information was coming in the mail to every American and that’s a time of year that people are more vulnerable.”
According to Nealy, The Federal Trade Commission estimates that it takes between 177 and 300 hours over the course of two years to clean up personal information after becoming a victim of identity theft.
“People are taking time off from their work and family to fix the situation in which they were just a victim and didn’t do anything wrong,” Nealy said. “A lot of our members have been victims of identity theft and they don’t want to have to worry about having to go through the process again.”
To alleviate stress for the customers, once a week, LifeLock’s checks the address forms filed at the Postal Service to see if there is a match for any of their members. If a change hasn’t been reported by the client, the company contacts them to find out if fraud has been committed, or if they simply forgot to update the information.
In addition, LifeLock’s eRecon service searches websites to see if their clients’ personal information is being traded.
“If any of our members becomes victims of identity theft while they’re with life lock, we’ll do all the remediation and spend what is necessary, up to $1 million, to get you where you were before you became a victim of identity theft,” Nealy said.
There are several things that consumers can do on their own to protect themselves, Nealy said, including placing a fraud alert with the credit bureau, opting out pre-approved credit card offers and staying on top of annual credit reports.
Nealy said the biggest risk consumers face is the various third parties that receive their information.
“Anytime we give it to someone else, we don’t know how they’re protecting it,” Nealy said.
Visit website www.lifelock.com or call 877-LIFELOCK to sign up.
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