by Hernani Cerqueira

Created on: June 15, 2009

Identity theft is type of fraud that where someone pretends to be another person, in order to obtain some type of benefit, either financial or other. There are many particular kinds of Identity theft identified by criminal experts, but because of its simplicity, online identity theft, also known as phishing, is the most dangerous and used by scammers around the globe. Even with the most caution possible we are never riskless of becoming victims of identity thieves, but we can minimize the possibilities.

With the spread of some kind of viruses known as Trojan or Spyware, is quite easy for someone with the necessary skills to steal something right from another person computer with an internet connection, so, our first measure should be the avoidance of storing any type of sensitive information on our pc, such as credit card or social security number, especially on public computer, unless we really need to do so. There are some freely available tools, specialized in encrypting computer files, making them accessible only via a password or any other type of security measure. This type of encryption makes the file impossible to open even for the most knowledgeable of hackers. Just make a search for "free encryption".

Next we should be aware that credit card numbers are particularly attractive for scammers. This kind of data should never be transmitted by email or instant messaging, or even by an unsecure connection, using plain data without any type of encryption. You've probably heard or know about https. Is exactly the same as http, the protocol we use for browsing, which stands for hyper text transfer protocol, but with an extra layer of security, the meaning of the extra s in https. How it works is out of topic here, but I can assure you that it works pretty well. Modern browsers automatically inform the users about such connections and their level of trust, so, we must always check that info before transmitting these kinds of data. Check your browser documentation.

Credit card numbers, have an extra three digits used to as a security pin. Banks often advise their customers that you must only transmit that pin number when completing a transaction, and never at the time of registration or at any other point. That number should never be stored on anywhere else but our credit card back. Not all companies do that, even major companies with high level of trustiness, but is something you should be aware of. If your favorite online store doesn't comply with those rules, and if you're not happy, complain.

Finally, with respect to credit cards, there are payment gateways such as PayPal and MoneyBookers that do a very good job at protecting your credit card data. These gateways work in a manner that only they need to know your credit card details, and not the reseller, and it's impossible to make a transaction just by knowing your id, you'll always have to agree with it. Most of online companies accept these types of gateways, specially the most popular ones. Use them.

Be paranoid, even the gigantic servers used by major companies are not immune to security breaches and hacker attacks. Check your bank statement regularly. Create your own little arsenal inside your computer, with good and updated antivirus and antispyware. Install all the available security updates provided by your operating system. If you need or want to get rid of your computer, and it has few or none commercial value, just completely trash it, run over it with a gigantic cylinder if possible... Ok, maybe I'm overeating, but bear in mind that security is never too much.

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