Protect Your Identity to Safeguard Your Finances

What is identity theft?

Identity theft occurs when someone uses your personal information, such as your Social Security number, bank account details or credit card information, without your permission to commit fraud or other crimes. Recognizing early warning signs and practicing good cybersecurity habits reduces your risk of identity theft and protects your finances.

Cybersecurity red flags

Understanding cybersecurity red flags can help you to identify potential threats before serious damage occurs. While this is not an exhaustive list, some common warning signs of identity theft or financial fraud may include:

• Errors, unexplained activity or transactions you did not initiate appearing on bank, credit card or other account statements, including online or mobile banking, or explanation of benefits documents from your health insurer.
• Regular bills and account statements that do not arrive on time, or do not arrive at all.
• Businesses unexpectedly refusing your checks or being unexpectedly denied a loan, credit card or job opportunity due to suspicious activity associated with your identity or credit profile.
• Bills or collection notices for products or services you did not order.
• Calls from debt collectors about debts that do not belong to you.
• Notices from the IRS stating that someone used your Social Security number.
• Mail, email or phone calls regarding accounts or employment in your minor child's name that you did not authorize.
• Unexpected collection notices appearing on your credit report.

If something feels off, trust your instincts and act quickly. Early detection is critical to preventing further damage to your financial and personal information.

How to protect your information

Protecting your information requires consistent habits and awareness. Taking proactive steps reduces your risk of identity theft, online fraud and other cybercrime. Utilize the following best practices to protect your personal, financial and medical information.

• Use online or mobile banking to monitor account activity regularly, set transaction alerts and immediately report suspicious activity.
• Carefully review bank statements, credit card statements and explanations of medical benefits from your health plan. Contact the business if a statement contains mistakes or does not arrive on time.
• Regularly review your credit report. You can check your report at AnnualCreditReport.com for free once a week. The site provides credit reports from TransUnion, Equifax and Experian and is the only federally authorized website for securely accessing this information.
• Shred documents that contain personal, financial or medical information before disposing of them.
• Do not open or respond to emails, text messages or phone calls asking for personal information. Legitimate companies will never ask you for sensitive information, such as passwords or account numbers, through these channels. Delete suspicious messages and report them to the company they appear to be from.
• Create strong passwords that combine letters, numbers and special characters. Use a unique password for each account, avoid writing passwords down and update them regularly.
• When shopping or banking online, use websites that protect your financial information with encryption. Secure sites have a URL that begins with “https,” with the “s” indicating secure.
• Avoid sending personal or financial information through websites that are not fully encrypted, especially when using public Wi-Fi networks.
• Use antivirus software, antispyware tools and a firewall on your computer to help block malicious activity.

Making these habits part of your regular routine protects your identity, reduces your exposure to cybercrime and supports long-term financial security.