Don’t be a victim of identity theft this holiday season
Credit bureau on how consumers can protect themselves from identity theft this holiday.
‘Tis the season to be jolly – but don’t let your guard down when it comes to protecting your personal information and financial well-being this Black Friday and festive season, warned TransUnion, a credit bureau.
Garnet Jensen, TransUnion director said that while identity theft is a year-round problem, the holiday season is a prime time for criminals looking to steal your credit card details and other financial information such as your driver’s license or identity document.
The holidays present a wealth of opportunity for identity thieves,” said Jensen.
“Shoppers are rushed and doing more transactions than usual, and stores are crowded. It’s easy to become less guarded about exposing your personal information – both in high-tech ways like phishing scams, and in traditional ones, such as a stolen wallet.”
According to a TransUnion survey in 2017, 75 percent of South African adults are worried about the possibility of identity theft. It’s a real fear: almost half of the respondents (49 percent) have either personally been a victim of identity theft or know someone who has, with more than one in ten respondents (11 percent) personally falling victim to identity theft.
Importantly, for shoppers heading for crowded malls, the most popular ways identity thieves get access to your sensitive personal information remains through physical theft (28 percent), like pickpocketing or bag-snatching. Theft of banking information by ATM scams or from online, mobile or person-to-person transactions was mentioned by 27 percent of respondents and 18 percent mentioned online breaches such as hacking and phishing as a cause of identity theft.
The problem with identity theft, said Jensen, is that victims typically only find out about the theft months later – by which time their account is in arrears and other credit accounts have been opened in their name.
Generally, thieves will use the victim’s identity to purchase products and services on credit, particularly for high-end goods like electronics and luxury items,” he said.
“In the worst-case scenario, thieves can use your ID to apply for large value credit purchases such as vehicle finance or even commit a crime using your identity.”
TransUnion’s top five tips for keeping your ID safe this festive season:
1. Keep your identity documents safe – Be careful where you keep your ID documents, and don’t carry them on you if you don’t have too. 14 percent of ID theft victims say the theft of their ID documents resulted in their identity being compromised.
2. Be alert when using ATMs – Look out for anything even faintly suspicious when banking at ATMs or card terminals. Pay attention to the device being used and your surroundings.
3. Shop from reputable websites – Before providing any personal or payment information, ensure the URL is secure and begins with “https” (not “http”). Also ensure that the domain name in the URL is the same as the organisation you are transacting with.
4. Beware of calls, SMSs and emails bearing gifts – If a caller, email or SMS offers financial reward or requests personal or banking information, delete it. And never, ever click on a link you don’t know.
5. Sign up for credit alerts and check your credit report – One of the first places identity theft shows up is on your credit report. It is therefore important to regularly check your credit report for changes. Our credit alert product will notify you of critical changes to your credit report – like a credit enquiry or new account.
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