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Protect Yourself
There are painful gaps in consumer law and business practices that make the extensive, time-consuming, complex and potentially expensive process of recovering from identity theft even harder. Dealing with the theft can take months or years. Don't take chances, and protect yourself:
- Shred. Shred. Shred. Dumpster diving is still a common source of information.
- Don't hold onto documents any longer than absolutely necessary.
- Obtain an EIN and use it instead of your SSN. Be cautious with your EIN and give it out sparingly.
- Obtain regular credit reports for yourself and your business. Review them carefully.
- Review your Better Business Bureau report regularly. In addition to identity theft, business can also become the victim of professional impersonation. In many cases, evidence of both types of crimes will show up on the BBB report.
- Owners should review transactions statements and account for all items. If you give review power to another individual, be aware they are now a target for bribes and extortion. The best solution is to take matters into your own hands and report any unusual activity immediately.
- Improve your business physical, technical, and personal security. Alarms, firewalls, encryption and anti-virus are all important components, but more important is the education of you and your staff. How to detect and deter phishing attacks, how to report suspicious behavior anonymously, and what to do if you believe you may have compromised information are all topics every employee should know by heart.
- Be an informed consumer: Ask what precautions businesses take with your applications and other business identifying documents and data. Explain your concerns. Enough business owners bring up these concerns, they will listen.
- Consider using electronic payment options. Since the networks are password-protected and the messages are encrypted, wire transfers and ACH payments are much safer than using paper checks.
- And lastly, consider a post office box or a lockbox for your mail. This ensures that business mail is retrieved by appropriate personnel and is not left in a box at the reach of any passerby.
Practical advice for changing the outlook for SMBs:
- Put your money where your mouth is, and the squeaky voting wheel gets the grease.
- Do business with companies with good security practices — even if it means it makes it more difficult to do business with them.
- Write to your representatives and voice your concerns.
- Bring awareness to the danger of identity theft for small and medium businesses to your associates, your lawmakers and your financial institutions.
If legislation regarding personal identity theft rights is any indication, it is going to require a concerted grass roots effort to bring awareness to the issue and create change. It is time.
I stress that these views are mine and influenced by the works cited here, they are not necessarily the views of ID Experts.
Copyright © 2008 To Present · Information-Security-Resources.com
Rachel James is an author and cybercrime authority at ID Experts. Prior to studying computer forensics and cybercrime investigations at Utica College, Rachel attended Portland State University with honors, majoring in Sociology. Former money laundering investigator and analyst for a major national bank, Rachel specializes in compliance and risk.
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