Insuring Your Identity – Ways to Protect Against Identity Theft

Identity theft is a serious crime and one that can cause major inconvenience to the innocent victims that are targeted by criminals who fraudulently access your personal and financial information. Recouping the money you have lost, as well as straightening up your credit for the future can take time, and can be a frustrating and difficult process.

To avoid falling prey to identity thieves in the first place, try these 10 top tips to protect yourself from identity theft:

Check Your Bank Accounts Daily

To ensure that there has been no fraudulent use on your bank accounts, you should check your account information daily. This can be easily accessed using your online banking app or telephone banking.

Use Secure Wi-Fi

Whenever you access the internet on your smart device, cell phone or laptop computer, always use a secure connection.  Unsecured wireless Internet connections can thwart all of your other protections, so you should use them as little as possible, or never at all.

Stick with Trusted Sites

Another way to stay safe online is by only using service websites.  Look for “https” in your browser window, as the “s” indicates a secure site.

Use super strong passwords

Come up with passwords that are truly unique and difficult to guess.  Use a combination of upper and lower case letters, numbers and symbols and use a different password for each site.

You should also be careful not to save your passwords on your computer or let your computer remember passwords on your behalf.

Protect all of your devices

Your computer, smartphone, and other devices that are connected to the Internet will all need to have the latest protections.  You should also update software regularly to ensure that any new threats are taken care of. Use file encryption whenever possible to protect individual files in case your system is breached.

Shred your documents

One of the easiest ways for a criminal to access your personal data is by using one of the oldest tricks in the book.  Simply by rifling through your trash can, they can have instant access to your name, address, bank details and other sensitive information without you knowing anything about it until it is too late.  Shred your documents before you toss them out, so they cannot be used for this purpose.

Dispute errors as you find them

If something doesn’t look right, no matter how minor the mistake may be, then you should immediately dispute it. Low-value false charges on credit cards or debt cards can sometimes be a “trial run” for criminals who will attempt larger amounts in the future.  Speak to your bank or credit card provider if you spot anything amiss.

Set Up Alerts

Many card providers and banks offer alerts that will notify you about questionable charges, odd purchasing behavior or unusually large purchases, you will usually receive a text message or phone call from your provider asking you to confirm or deny the purchase.

Protect Yourself with The Sena Group

If you are interested in finding the right insurance products to help you cover your home, your car, your health or anything else, speak to us today at 561-391-4661.

For more information about how The Sena Group can help you with any

of your insurance needs, please contact us at 561-391-4661.

We can be found on Social Media at the following links.

The Sena Group
6501 Congress Ave., Ste. 100
Boca Raton, FL 33487