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Many people have become aware of the devastating consequences that identity theft can present. According to the latest research by Unisys Security Index, nearly three quarters of their subjects expressed a fear of becoming a victim of identity theft. This is especially due to the growing awareness of people towards the crimes of identity theft, especially now that it has remained the primary consumer complaint for 8 years in a row.
The fear of debit card fraud comes second only to identity theft, although the former is also one of the crimes that are committed later. In fact, they are directly related to the process of skimming. Perhaps you thought of this term in your school days as the process of scanning your text paragraphs for rapid reading comprehension, but it actually has more meanings that can put your identity at risk.
The process of skimming can happen anytime and anywhere you use your credit card to pay for goods or services you’ve purchased. This can happen in a restaurant, for example, when you give your credit or debit card to the waiter or waitress and they leave your sight to verify the authenticity of your card. They may have verified the authenticity of your card but you never know if you can trust them enough. There could be chances that you are giving your credit card information to a certain device which is used by these criminals, which is called a skimmer. It can save your credit card number instantly without you knowing anything about it.
Furthermore, your personal information will be further compromised when you use an Automated Teller Machine (ATM). Although using ATMs instead of direct bank transactions has been suggested by others, they may be proven wrong as skimmers can be placed inside ATMs as well. Once you insert your card into the machine, a message will flash letting you know it is bad. Your credit card number and personal identification number (PIN) are already stored by the skimmer as soon as you withdraw your card to try your luck at another machine.
Thus, you should check your financial accounts from time to time. Request a copy of your credit history so that you can systematically review your credit transactions and spot any suspicious activities. In fact, you can get free credit monitoring reports every year from three nationwide credit monitoring companies namely Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. This was furthered by the government by passing the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 to address the growing number of identity theft victims.
With the invention of skimmers, it is promising that identity theft will increase its crime rate. With the discovery that technology has provided to criminals, it is not impossible to assume that there will be more schemes to come. So, whatever you do, be it online or in the real world, you have to protect yourself by being more alert and cautious.
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