Life often imitates art – and sadly, this is the case with British television actress Keeley Hawes, who plays Detective Martha Lawson on the new show, “Identity.” The show centers around an elite group if identity theft detectives.
The actress’ credit cards were stolen by someone working at her home, and they proceeded to run up a bill of £7,000, more than $10,500.
In the television series, Hawes’ character is head of the identity theft unit, which according to ITV’s Web site, is there to, “tackle imposters who look, talk and sound just like us but who would kill you in a heartbeat. Lawson works any case where making an identification is a significant part of solving the crime by outsmarting, hunting down and unmasking the modern-day Jekyll and Hydes.”
In the case of identity fraud, a pound of prevention is certainly worth an ounce of cure. There are measures you can take to avoid falling victim to identity theft.
• Be wary when asked to give out personal details online. If you doubt the request is genuine, contact the company directly.
• Make sure you have the latest virus protection software on your computer, and that you have a firewall.
• Keep your personal identification number secure, and do not use the same number for all of your accounts. Never write down your pin.
• Don’t include common verification such as you date of birth or your mother’s maiden name.
• When using online banking, make sure other users can’t view your details by looking over your shoulder. When you are done, log out of the site, rather than just closing the window.
• If you are disposing of an old computer, make sure you destroy information on the hard drive using security software; simply deleting it isn’t enough.
• Always check bank and credit card statements carefully against your receipts, and review your statements every month.
• Obtain and review a copy of your credit report at least once a year to make sure there is no unauthorized or fraudulent activity.
To feel more confident about the security of your personal information, go online at www.lifelock.com and sign up for LifeLock’s protection today.
