Healthy Computing at DePauw University

Identity Theft

What is it?
Identity theft occurs when someone uses your personal information (i.e., your name, Social Security Number, credit card number or other identifying information) without your permission, usually to commit fraud or other crimes.

What risks are involved?
Daily activities such as writing checks, charging an item to your credit card, and forgetting to log off your computer system can increase your risk of identity theft. Victims of identity theft often have to spend lots of time and money cleaning up their personal and financial records. In the meantime, they may be refused loans, housing or cars, or even get arrested for crimes they didn’t commit.

What can I do to protect myself?

• Order a copy of your credit report from each of the three major credit bureaus (find these at http://www.consumer.gov/idtheft). Your credit report contains information on where you work and live, the credit accounts that have been opened in your name, how you pay your bills and whether you’ve been sued, arrested or filed for bankruptcy. Make sure it’s accurate and includes only those activities you’ve authorized.
• Keep your passwords and PIN numbers secret. Your Kerberos password, for example, allows you to access many campus services and a great deal of information about you that the campus stores on computer systems. Sharing your Kerberos password allows others to access information including your name, address, Social Security number and financial records.
• Place passwords on your credit card, bank and phone accounts. Avoid using easily available information like your mother’s maiden name, your birth date, the last four digits of your SSN or your phone number, or a series of consecutive numbers. When opening new accounts, you may find that many businesses still have a line on their applications for your mother’s maiden name. Use a password instead.
• Secure personal information in your home, especially if you have roommates, employ a housekeeper or are having service work done in your home.
• Ask about information security procedures in your workplace. Find out who has access to your personal information and verify that records are kept in a secure location. Ask about the disposal procedures for those records as well.
• Don’t keep personal information stored on computers unless it is encrypted.
• Use a shredder! When discarding documents containing personal identification information, use a shredder or mark over the sensitive information so it can’t be read by dumpster-divers.
• Don’t send personal information via email – it can be easily read or intercepted.
• When shopping online, make sure the site is secure. Before submitting your personal identity info to a web storefront, look for the padlock icon in the corner of the page that asks you to input your credit card number. You should also read the store’s privacy statement – can the store resell or share your information with others without your permission? If so, they might not be worth your business.