Stopping Identity Theft: 10 Easy Steps to Security (Paperback)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: theft affidavit, thy credit report, medical identity theft, Social Security, Federal Trade Commission, Sandra Block (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

" A must-have for anyone who doesn't plan to spend the next 50 years living in a cave." --John Ulzheimer, President of Consumer Education, credit.com and CNBC contributor

Product Description

Someone's identity is stolen every four seconds -- don't be a victim!

Over 8 million Americans have their identities stolen each year. Most don't find out until it's too late, only realizing their predicament once their bank accounts have been emptied or their credit rating has been destroyed. And you don't even have to be an adult to be at risk -- over half a million children are the victims of identity theft each year.

Protect yourself and your children against America's fastest-growing crime with Stopping Identity Theft, written by identity protection expert and TrustedID CEO Scott Mitic. You'll get ten simple, action-oriented protection plans for limiting the vulnerability of your personal information in any risky situation.

Get the facts from a leader in identity theft protection, including:

why shopping in stores can be riskier than shopping online

how to spot scammers in any situation -- online or on the phone

how to build a social networking profile without being the victim of fake "friends"

what new techniques thieves are using to scam you, like phishing, pharming and skimming

why old-fashioned checks can be the riskiest way to pay for something, and

how to protect your identity while you travel.

Learn how to secure your bank accounts, keep personal and public records safe, store and dispose of personal information, limit your risk of medical identity theft, and keep your children and elders' identities secure. In ten easy steps, you can reduce your chances of identity theft now -- and should you ever become a victim, you'll have all the information you need to stop the thieves and rebuild your good name.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: NOLO; 1st edition (February 27, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1413309569
• ISBN-13: 978-1413309560
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #340,405 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Eye Opening, July 2, 2009

By	Stephanie Sane (from the Asylum) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

(What's this?)

I had no idea identity theft was so prevalent. I also had no idea that I'd made myself such an easy target. Fortunately, I haven't been targeted. Yet.

Like many, I do online banking, use both a credit and debit card and pay by check. I thought if I was careful about prying eyes at the ATM that I was safe from anyone getting my pin and stealing my money. I guess I was wrong. I'd never heard of card readers before that allow thieves to steal both your debit card number and your pin. I'd never known how thieves could use my checking account info to loot it.

I did however know about the various phishing scams out there and am careful online, but now I'm going to be more careful. And I'm going to follow Scott Mitic's advice and get a copy of my credit report often.

If you have a credit card, debit card, checking account or a computer in your home, you should read this book. I had no idea what I had been letting myself in for. I bet you don't either.

Reviewed by Stephanie Sane

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Stopping Identity Theft - A Practical Guide, And So Much More, May 27, 2009

By	Mark "Technology, Music and Movies" (East Coast) - See all my reviews (#1 REVIEWER)

(What's this?)

Stopping Identity Theft: 10 Easy Steps to Security is a very well organized primer on all things related to identity theft and security of your personal financial information. The scope of possible ways that people can obtain and misuse your financial information is so vast that even those who consider themselves to be well-versed in this area will find something to learn here.

Pages 12 and 13 outline the "10 Easy Steps" referred to by the subtitle, though they are interspersed throughout the book. The steps cover everything from knowing your credit and avoiding scams, all the way through stopping identity theft once it has occurred. Along the way, background and supporting information is provided in the form of "USA-Today" style information boxes that provide snapshots of relevant points. The clean structure and good content of the book makes it very easy to quickly read and learn from.

A big part of detecting and responding to identity theft is maintaining your credit, which requires constant vigilance. Even some of the basic things aren't being done as much as they should be, such as regularly reviewing and correcting your credit report. Ironically, every area where one should focus on is also a potential area for new identity theft risks. The author covers, early on, how some websites advertising free credit reports are in fact themselves vehicles for identity theft. Thus, using trusted resources for identifying the legitimate firms and government agencies one needs to contact is half the battle.

The author covers all the areas that people can lower their risk of identity theft, such as avoiding common scams and limiting the exposure of their personal financial information. But he also is quick to point out that there are some areas that are out of our control, such as the security of our data maintained but other companies, institutions and government agencies. Those things are definitely a wake-up call and they make the monitoring and detection of possible identity theft even more important. The author goes to great lengths to make clear that a quick response is critical if one is to minimize the damage.

RESOURCES

The author book is peppered with resources and references that are worth the time and aggravation saved from not having to navigate the land-mines that are often found in phony search results and disreputable firms.

At the very end of the book there is a "resources" section on pages 223 and 224. What is most interesting about this section is that while it includes the most likely sought after resources, it does not have all the various links that are peppered throughout the book. It would have definitely been nice if they would have collected all those links along with the contact information in that resources section. However, a link is provided to the companion website that is apparently updated to include more links and ensure the information is kept up to date.

CONCLUSION

The amount of information covered in this book is vast. Yet the way that it is structured makes it very readable and usable. This will definitely be a book that you will want to use as a resource after reading. The growing number of potential risks out there is definitely a cause for concern. This is definitely recommended for anybody interested in maintaining their credit and avoiding abuse of their identity.

Enjoy.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Apprehensive after seeing "Trusted ID" website, but this is everything you need to know and more..., May 23, 2009

By	YogaKat "YogaKat" (Oregon United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

(What's this?)

Trusted ID dot com is an on-line company that sells identity theft protection for 20 bucks a month, so I was a little apprehensive about the book. I figured Scott Mitic would be selling his on-line services in the book, but not so!

This is a very detailed book, which it needs to be since identity theft can happen in many different situations in your life. Scott Mitic breaks it down into 10 steps (12 chapters in the book). It is easy reading and each chapter can be read separately. There are special areas within each chapter that are highlighted in blue boxes and through graphic illustrations (USA today "Snap Shots").

There is an introduction in Chapter 1 called "Identity Theft--What's the Problem?" which gives you an overview of identity theft and lists the 10 steps generally encompassing:
1. Credit Reporting
2. Safe Methods of Payment
3. Online purchases
4. Identify Scams
5. Shopping
6. Shared Personal Information
7. Medical Identity Theft
8. Family Identity Theft
9. Travel
10. How to stop ID theft if it happens to you.

The closing Chapter 12 called "Stay Ahead of the Curve" includes a test to see if you're identity theft savvy. Also included is keeping up with the latest trends, and especially helpful "How paranoid should you be?

This is great reference book to have on hand and highly recommended for everyone!!! Well worth the 20 bucks retail price, or 14 bucks on Amazon!!!