Protect Your Identity

Texas is the first state to offer a system to catch identity thieves early on. Closed Account Notification System alerts merchants when a check is written from an account that was closed due to identity theft. The clerk will instantly know that the store patron is a thief and not to accept the check.

With the old system, it took weeks to notify stores of the fraudulent activity. “Thieves are stopped in their tracks,” State Democratic Rep. Helen Giddings said. “No longer will identity thieves be able to profit from their crimes by passing bad checks for weeks.”

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The world is littered with crooks and punks for whom credit card fraud constitutes a way to make a profitable living. Consumers have to be careful. Besides, would it kill you to pay cash every now and then? Cash, the surefire way to put the credit card scam artists out of business.


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Tax documents are treasure trove for identity thieves. They contain social security numbers, names, addresses and a host of financial information. It’s estimated that more than 8 million Americans fall victim to identity theft each year and the FTC recently reported that the No. 1 category of complaint they received in 2007 was identity theft, which made up 32 percent of total complaints received. Internet fraud-related losses averaged slightly more than $2,700 per person victimized, the FTC said.

Identity theft, which made up 32 percent of total complaints received. Internet fraud-related losses averaged slightly more than $2,700 per person victimized, the FTC said.

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A security breach at an East Coast supermarket chain exposed more than 4 million card numbers and led to 1,800 cases of fraud, the Hannaford Bros. grocery chain announced Monday. Hannaford said credit and debit card numbers were stolen during the card authorization process. About 4.2 million unique card numbers were exposed, placing the case among the largest data breaches ever.

The company urged its customers to monitor their credit and debit cards for unusual transactions and report any problems to authorities. It also told customers to beware of e-mails and calls from people claiming to represent Hannaford and seeking any personal information.


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Many states have laws that let consumers “freeze” their credit – in other words, letting a consumer restrict access to his or her credit report. If you place a credit freeze, potential creditors and other third parties will not be able to get access to your credit report unless you temporarily lift the freeze.  This means that it’s unlikely that an identity thief would be able to open a new account in your name.  Placing a credit freeze does not affect your credit score – nor does it keep you from getting your free annual credit report, or from buying your credit report or score.

Credit freeze laws vary from state to state.  In some states, anyone can freeze their credit file, while in other states, only identity theft victims can.  The cost of placing, temporarily lifting, and removing a credit freeze also varies.  Many states make credit freezes free for identity theft victims, while other consumers pay a fee – typically $10.  It’s also important to know that these costs are for each of the credit reporting agencies.  If you want to freeze your credit, it would mean placing the freeze with each of three credit reporting agencies, and paying the fee to each one. 

You can find more information about credit freeze laws specific to your state by clicking here, including information on how to place one.

From www.ftc.gov