Protect yourself against Fraud!!!
This is a great bit of advice that I thought I'd share with the rest of you. Recently there has been a lot of theft of people's credit cards, bank cards and what not. Social Engineering, where people pretend to be someone of authority to get you to offer personal information about yourself VOLUNTARILY is on the rise. Here are just a few tips on how to keep yourself safe from fraud.
1. The next time you order checks have only your initials (instead of first name) and last name put on them. If someone takes your checkbook, they will not know if you sign your checks with just your initials or your first name, but your bank will know how you sign your checks.
2. Do not sign the back of your credit cards. Instead, put "PHOTO ID REQUIRED".
3. When you are writing checks to pay on your credit card accounts, DO NOT put the complete account number on the "For" line. Instead, just put the last four numbers. The credit card company knows the rest of the number, and anyone who might be handling your check as it passes through all the check processing channels won't have access to it.
4. Put your work phone # on your checks instead of your home phone. If you have a PO Box use that instead of your home address. If you do not have a PO Box, use your work address. Never have your SIN# printed on your checks. (DUH!) You can add it if it is necessary. But if you have it printed, anyone can get it.
5. Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine. Do both sides of each license, credit card, etc. You will know what you had in your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to call and cancel. Keep the photocopy in a safe place. I also carry a photocopy of my passport when travel either here or abroad. We've all heard horror stories about fraud that's committed on us in stealing a name, address, SIN, credit cards.
If you lose your wallet or if it is stollen:
1. Cancel the credit cards immediately. But the key is having the toll free numbers and your card numbers handy so you know whom to call. Keep those where you can find them.
2. File a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where your credit cards, etc. were stolen. This proves to credit providers you were diligent, and this is a first step toward an investigation (if there ever is one).
3. Call the two national credit reporting organizations immediately to place a fraud alert on your name and Social Insurance number. This is the most important thing to do. Now, here are the numbers you always need to contact about your wallet, etc. has been stolen:
This is a great bit of advice that I thought I'd share with the rest of you. Recently there has been a lot of theft of people's credit cards, bank cards and what not. Social Engineering, where people pretend to be someone of authority to get you to offer personal information about yourself VOLUNTARILY is on the rise. Here are just a few tips on how to keep yourself safe from fraud.
1. The next time you order checks have only your initials (instead of first name) and last name put on them. If someone takes your checkbook, they will not know if you sign your checks with just your initials or your first name, but your bank will know how you sign your checks.
2. Do not sign the back of your credit cards. Instead, put "PHOTO ID REQUIRED".
3. When you are writing checks to pay on your credit card accounts, DO NOT put the complete account number on the "For" line. Instead, just put the last four numbers. The credit card company knows the rest of the number, and anyone who might be handling your check as it passes through all the check processing channels won't have access to it.
4. Put your work phone # on your checks instead of your home phone. If you have a PO Box use that instead of your home address. If you do not have a PO Box, use your work address. Never have your SIN# printed on your checks. (DUH!) You can add it if it is necessary. But if you have it printed, anyone can get it.
5. Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine. Do both sides of each license, credit card, etc. You will know what you had in your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to call and cancel. Keep the photocopy in a safe place. I also carry a photocopy of my passport when travel either here or abroad. We've all heard horror stories about fraud that's committed on us in stealing a name, address, SIN, credit cards.
If you lose your wallet or if it is stollen:
1. Cancel the credit cards immediately. But the key is having the toll free numbers and your card numbers handy so you know whom to call. Keep those where you can find them.
2. File a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where your credit cards, etc. were stolen. This proves to credit providers you were diligent, and this is a first step toward an investigation (if there ever is one).
3. Call the two national credit reporting organizations immediately to place a fraud alert on your name and Social Insurance number. This is the most important thing to do. Now, here are the numbers you always need to contact about your wallet, etc. has been stolen:
- Equifax Canada: 1-877-249-2705
- TransUnion: 1-877-525-3823
Hopefully you'll never lose your wallet but if you do...now you know what to do!
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