An Open Letter From a So-called Stupid

Someone recently told me, "You would have to be a stupid to lose your personal information." While I respectfully responded to this person in the moment, the comment has stuck with me. I present on Identity Theft all over the Western United States, and thought I would respond to this particular individual in writing.

There are multitudes of ways to lose your personal information. You have undoubtedly heard of many of them. Fake web sites, data theft, stealing people's trash, stealing people's outgoing mail, check fraud, etc., are just a few of the possibilities for loss of information. Job ads are also being used for Identity Theft. Monster.com ranks fake companies posing as real companies on their web site among their biggest problems.

So, to you who think that it could never happen to you, you might want to read this next sentence twice. No matter how good you are, no matter how vigilant, no matter how much you shred or tear, no matter how many times you go to the post office so that you don't put outgoing mail in your home mailbox, regardless of how well you can hide in your home, there is no 100% effective defense against Identity Theft. Let me say that again, in case you don't read it twice. There is NO 100% effective method to defend yourself against identity theft.

Here's an example of why. Let's say you want to get health insurance, or auto insurance, or finance a car, etc. etc. etc. Let's say for purposes of this example that you are trying to get health insurance through your company. This is a relatively simple process, right? Fill out the form, and wait to get the insurance cards in the mail.

What you may not realize is that the insurance agent has taken the form you filled out and submitted it for group health. It is submitted to three different companies for underwriting. So now, the insurance agent and the insurance company has the information from you, the three companies supplying the insurance coverage have the information on you, AND all of the employees at all four points have access to the information. Think about how many employees that might be.

That information is often then passed on to a data warehouse like ChoicePoint, and anyone who has access to ChoicePoint now has access to that information. Who has access to ChoicePoint? I think with the recent news articles, the more appropriate question is, who doesn't have access to ChoicePoint?

The information is also submitted to your MIB (Medical Information Bureau) file. Anyone who has access to the MIB files, now has access to all of that information. Who has access to the Medical Information Bureau records? Anyone, at any hospital around the United States, who has even a small amount of clearance, has access to the Medical Information Bureau records.

According to John Gardner, co-author or Chicken Soup for the Entrepreneurial Soul, "This makes the Identity Theft Shield, along with a Pre-Paid Legal Services Membership, an absolute must for anyone that's breathing."

So to you, sir, who more or less said to me, "You'd have to be stupid to become a victim of Identity Theft!" I wish you my best. If you want to continue thinking that shredding your information is going to protect you, then for you I respectfully choose a phrase used by my friend Larry Smith. "Sometimes, you just can't fix stupid."

Jonathan Kraft is Colorado's foremost expert on computer-related Identity Theft. He has been helping employers and employees to protect themselves from the issues surrounding Identity Theft since long before identity theft reached today's epidemic proportions. To learn how Mr. Kraft can protect you or your company against the effects of Identity Theft, please call 877 825-7119, or email mailto:jkraft@strive4impact.com. You can also find out more online at http://www.strive4impact.com/idt

---

Make Money Online - Defend Against The Latest Scam

First, let's do a little recap'. As I stated in... Read More

HackAttack

P C. owners are constantly at risk from attacks by... Read More

Website Security - Creating a Bulletproof Site in 5 Easy Steps

When it comes to a secure website and passwords it... Read More

Burning Bridges is Bad, But Firewalls are Good

When you signed up for that ultra-fast DSL or Cable... Read More

New Mass Mailing Spamming Internet Trojan for the Windows Platform

May. 16th 2005 - MicroWorld has reported the discovery of... Read More

The Never Ending Spyware Story

It's been with us since 1993, it's gotten more intrusive,... Read More

Pharming - Another New Scam

Pharming is one of the latest online scams and rapidly... Read More

Mail Forwarding - Why Would You Do It?

First of all we need to get some terms stated.... Read More

What to Look for before You Purchase Spyware Software

Huge number of spyware software applications are available in the... Read More

40 Million People Hacked - YOU as Identity Theft Victim

Saturday, MasterCard blamed a vendor of ALL credit card providers... Read More

5 Simple Steps to Protect your Digital Downloads

A couple of days ago, I was searching for a... Read More

Types Of Computer Infections

Computer infections can be broken up into 4 main categories... Read More

Why Corporations Need to Worry About Phishing

Phishing is a relatively new form of online fraud that... Read More

Detect Spyware Online

You can detect spyware online using free spyware cleaners and... Read More

Message Board Security Problems

Security leaks can be a big problem for any site... Read More

Dont Allow Hackers to Take Out Money from Your Bank Account

If you know what is the 'Fishing' then it's very... Read More

Ransom Trojan Uses Cryptography for Malicious Purpose

Every day millions of people go online to find information,... Read More

Virus Prevention 101

Blaster, Welchia, Sobig, W32, Backdoor, Trojan, Melissa, Klez, Worm, Loveletter,... Read More

Is Your Email Private? Part 1 of 3

In a word, no - an email message has always... Read More

Computer-Virus Writers: A Few Bats In The Belfry?

"Male. Obsessed with computers. Lacking a girlfriend. Aged 14 to... Read More

How To Give Away Your Personal Information

Identity Theft and Your Personal Information Identity theft is... Read More

Are They Watching You Online?

When surfing the Internet you probably take your anonymity for... Read More

Spyware Protection Software

Spyware protection software is the easiest way of removing spyware... Read More

Dont Get Hacked - A Guide to Protecting Your Business from Thieves

You've seen it in the news - 40 million credit... Read More

Why Malicious Programs Spread So Quickly?

It seems that nowadays cybercriminals prefer cash to fun. That... Read More

With the Rise of Internet Crimes, Users are Turning to High-Tech ?PI?s? for Solutions

High-tech private investigators are becoming the answer for many Internet... Read More

Is The Internet Over Regulated

Today's Internet or World Wide Web is being over regulated.But,... Read More

Is My PC Vulnerable on the Internet?

No longer are viruses the only threat on the internet.... Read More

5 Tips For An Unbreakable Password

Despite the current wave of identity theft and corporate security... Read More

How To Clean the Spies In Your Computer?

Manual Spy Bot Removal > BookedSpaceBookedSpace is an Internet Explorer... Read More

How to Thwart the Barbarian Spyware!

Today,on most internet user's computers, we have the ability to... Read More

Remove Rogue Desktop Icons Created By Spyware

If you have used a Windows machine for a while,... Read More

Road Warrior At Risk: The Dangers Of Ad-Hoc Wireless Networking

Airport Menace: The Wireless Peeping Tom As a network... Read More