You’re going to college to learn more about who you are and what you want to do after you graduate. But without your knowledge, an identity thief could buy a designer t-shirt or enjoy the latest Starbucks drink using credit you never even got the chance to use. Although identity theft declined in 2016 for the first time in 10 years, the Federal Trade Commission still got almost 400,000 reports.
You might think you are a less appealing target to identity thieves as a college student. The truth is, college students ages 20-29 represented 12% of the complaints the FTC received in 2016.
You might think you are a less appealing target to identity thieves as a college student. The truth is, college students ages 20-29 represented 12% of the complaints the FTC received in 2016.
Most people aren’t aware that identity theft includes many other crimes in addition to stealing credit or hacking someone’s bank account. Identity theft could cost you future job opportunities and a tax refund. You could have your picture and reputation stolen online, or receive medical bills for procedures performed on a total stranger.
You might have seen advertisements for identity theft protection sites that offer scans of the Dark Web to see if your information has been offered for sale there. Dark Web sites can’t be accessed through ordinary search engines. You need to use the Tor web browser to visit the sites. Some Dark Web sites are harmless, but others sell drugs, guns, and personally identifying information (PII), also called “fullz” by cyberthieves. You will find websites accessible via the regular internet selling hacked social media profiles and some personal information as well.
You don’t want your personal identity bought and sold at all, so here are ten smart ways to stop identity theft:
10. Don’t Open Or Use “Phishing” Emails. A Southern California college recently sent out a fake ‘phishing’ email to students and faculty from “sonja@idtheft.ru” to test awareness of email identity theft. Sonja’s poorly-worded email requested users to reset their password. Students and faculty members who responded got signed up for a course in email safety. The first lesson was “don’t give your passwords out to strangers from Russia who can’t spell.” Signs of phishing include unfamiliar email addresses, misspellings of common words, and spoofed names using an “l” instead of “1” or “m” instead of “n”.
9. Secure Your Dead Tree Mail. Paper credit card, student loan, and bank statements are still some of the top ways ID thieves get personally identifying information. Don’t let your mail sit around for weeks where anybody can find it. Tear it up when you’ve read it, or best of all, buy a shredder. You can even split the cost with roommates to save some money. If your school provides one, use it as often as you can.
College and university computer systems often maintain roving profiles that follow you from computer to computer. Clear your cache and browser history before you log off of any shared computer.
8. Erase Your Web History On School Computers. Identity thieves can easily search browsing history on library or dorm shared computers. College and university computer systems often maintain roving profiles that follow you from computer to computer. Clear your cache and browser history before you log off of any shared computer. Don’t just close windows when you’re finished using a website, either. Be certain you are completely logged off.
7. Disable Autocomplete Or Autocorrect And Be Careful Using Public WiFi. Thieves can hack into your mobile devices or laptop using WiFi to access features in autocomplete or autocorrect. It’s easy for them to use these tools to uncover passwords along with your home address and passwords for bank accounts, student loans, and credit cards. You can disable these functions in your web browser (IE, Firefox, Chrome, Safari) by changing them in Internet Options.
6. Opt Out Of Pre-Screened Credit Offers. Thieves can easily get a pre-screened credit card offer out of your mailbox, gather a little bit of additional information, and sign up for the card. You may never see the charges until you need credit later on and learn that somebody else using your name bought a home entertainment system or a sonar fish finder and skipped out on the charges.
5. Delete Old Or Unused Social Media Accounts. Cyberthieves love to steal old social media accounts (even MySpace) and use them to spam people with ads, or to beef up the fake follower count of a celebrity or politician. Imagine how bad it would be to apply for your dream internship and be declined because your name and picture had promoted a male enhancement product or similar embarrassing message.
Imagine how bad it would be to apply for your dream internship and be declined because your name and picture had promoted a male enhancement product or similar embarrassing message.
4. Don’t Put Personal Information in Social Media Games. Avoid social media quizzes that ask personal information “just for fun.” These games are often just another way for ID thieves to get personal details that could allow them to hack into your credit cards or bank account. “What was your first pet?” and “Where did you go to elementary school?” are two common password reset questions.
3. Apply For Jobs Wisely. ID thieves frequently post fake job ads on job sites like Craigslist or local bulletin boards. Don’t respond to job ads that seem too good to be true while asking for your social security number or what kind of car you drive. Legitimate employers will use secure systems or in-person methods to complete required employment information, after they offer you the job and you accept.
2. Don’t Fill Out Websites Or Answer Calls From Strangers About Scholarships, Grants, Or Tax Refunds. Some of the newest Identity theft scams encourage students to give out their social security number, date of birth, or home address because they’ve been chosen for a scholarship or are eligible for a tax refund. You or your student aid office will initiate any grant or scholarship application. The same goes for tax refunds. File your taxes yourself through a reputable service or on-campus tax clinic. No one will ever give you a refund or grant over the phone.
1. Stay On Top Of Your Credit And Information. Even if you don’t have a credit card, chances are you have a credit profile with one or all three of the top credit bureaus. Sign up for a free credit reporting service if you can’t afford one. Now if you have extra money, better yet sign-up with a comprehensive identity theft protection service that compensates you in case you become a victim. Some student bank accounts also offer free credit reports with each monthly statement. Watch for suspicious charges or new accounts. Being aware of your credit use and finances is the strongest weapon to avoid identity theft.
Identity thieves could get prescriptions filled in your name or have an elective surgery costing thousands of dollars: with the bill sent to you.
Identity theft goes far beyond stealing someone’s credit. Your mobile phone payment system can be spoofed, and your social security number used to get a tax refund. Identity thieves could get prescriptions filled in your name or have an elective surgery costing thousands of dollars: with the bill sent to you.
Work on anti-identity theft habits so you can spend your time in college studying, hanging out with friends, or excelling as a student-athlete or creative artist. Make your college experience about your dreams and interests, not the desires of an identity thief.
It never crossed my mind that thieves would actually post fake jobs to gather personal information. Nonetheless, it does make a lot of sense. They’ll post a tempting offer where the students will try to showcase the best of their talents and there you go! The thieves have all the information they need. That’s crafty but truly devious.
I have made it a practice to burn all our expired documents such as bank statements and official receipts. It’s safer that way.
Yes, burning your expired personal documents is a lot safer than shredding them into pieces. I can’t forget the scene in Argo where little kids were able to put together important documents that were already shredded. Better to burn. It leaves no trace of information that could be used against you.
For college students, I think #8 should really emphasized. Kids share their laptops and gadgets. They’re very careless. They forget to log out. Unknowingly, they give their friends access to their accounts and that’s pretty dangerous. For school computers, kids should really be taught to delete their browsing history.
Thank you very much for this article. I know about identity theft but I had no idea that it could affect kids. That part of the crime just didn’t strike me because I never thought kids would be appealing to identity thieves but obviously, I was wrong.
Identity thieves love to target kids because it gives them enough time to get away with the crime. They steal the personal info, commit the crime, and unfortunately, get away with it because no one ever bothers to do a credit check on the kids. There are cases where the kid can’t even get a college loan because of bad credit. So as parents, it’s just right to run a credit check on the kids. Also, the kids should always be reminded to take care of their personal data. The tips mentioned above are very, very useful.
I really think it’s important for kids to understand the repercussions of oversharing online. These days, kids think that it’s natural to just tell the whole world everything about themselves. They should know when to stop.