As if life isnt difficult enough, we now have to deal with the threat of identity theft. People everywhere are being duped, robbed and swindled of their personal information, which is then used to make purchases in their names. The result is very often a nightmare of trashed credit ratings, astronomical bills and legal fees incurred in the fight to right wrongs.
Go Banking Rates has highlighted the following remarkable cases:
Staring Them in the Face
J.C. Penney clerk Michelle McCambridge got lucky, in a way. A week after someone had stolen her personal information and opened up multiple credit cards in her name, she found herself face-to-face with a woman asking to open up a store credit card in Michelles name.
She called security, the FBI got involved and soon McCambridge had helped bring a 39-person fraud ring to justice.
S/He’s Not Who You Think S/He is
Someone got a hold of swimwear model Bree Condons personal information and created a profile in her name on dating site SeekingMillionaire.com.
A Miami doctor took the bait, and ended up sending Condons impersonator (with whom hed only spoken on the phone) $15,000. When Condon caught wind of it all she hired a P.I., and soon the imposter was uncovered: 24-year-old Justin Brown, a young man with an effeminate voice and a tiny little dog given by another Condon suitor.
Their Dirty Secrets
This interview of an anonymous (and seemingly sociopathic) Internet scammer is a disturbing window into the mind of a identity thief.
Not only is he smug, but hes shockingly resourceful in his attempts to take other peoples money. Very, very sobering stuff. We learned all it takes is information from a job application and a Paypal account to scam thousands.
Protecting yourself from identity theft is something everyone needs to take seriously. Whether youre a high-profile swimwear model, a retail clerk, a PayPal user or all of the above, the bottom line is that anyone with sensitive personal information needs to be aware that they could become a victim of identity theft. By taking steps to prevent identity theft (like using recommended service GoIdentityprotect.com) you’re making it that much harder for determined thieves to wreak havoc on your life.
Similar Posts:
- Personal Finance Roundup of the Week: Identity Theft and Scam Prevention Ideas
- Pennsylvania Man Convicted for Identity Theft
- How Does Identity Theft Work? (Infographic)
- How to Avoid Census Bureau Scams
- IRS Reports a 5-Fold Increase in Taxpayer Identity Theft Over 2 Years
