How does identity theft happen?

Identity theft can take many different forms.

Some of these include:

Digging through your trash (dumpster diving)
Thieves search through trash looking for anything containing your personal information including bills, credit card offers, computer printouts and even old credit cards.

Phone scams (vishing)
Consumers receive unsolicited phone calls asking to confirm personal information like an account number, Social Security number, or other sensitive information. If you share that information with unknown persons, you may find yourself a victim of identity or credit theft.

Skimming
This is a scam where thieves copy information from the magnetic stripe of your credit or debit card. This is used to make phony card, which will access your account balance or credit line.

Phishing
Thieves use email to lure consumers to phony websites that look like a legitimate company websites, such as a bank, credit union or Ebay. These phony sites are used to trick you into giving out your account numbers, passwords and more.

SMiShing
This is basically a phishing attack sent by SMS (text messaging). Thieves attempt to trick mobile-phone users into sending personal information through text messages, or downloading a virus programmed to access your personal information.

Stealing
With sophisticated methods of identity theft on the rise, it’s important to remember that many thieves can still get your information the old-fashioned way: by stealing wallets and purses, your mail, or your checks.