Monitoring Your Personal Information

What Personal Information Should You Monitor?

Some coaches believe that "The Best Offense is a GOOD DEFENSE".
If the opposing team can't score against your team because of your good defense, then that's worth many offensive points to your team.

In the same way, the Best Offense against Identity Theft is to have a good defense.  And that defense is to routinely monitor your accounts and billing statements and keep an eye out for any kind of suspicious activity that might occur. 

Early detection of a potential identity theft can make a big difference in the amount of time and money that you have to spend in order to repair all of the damage done by an Identity Thief.
 

1. Monitor Your Financial Accounts

When you receive statements on credit cards, bills to be paid or other financial accounts LOOK AT THEM!  Inspect them closely for charges you did not make.  Do this on every statement you receive, not just once in awhile.  If an Identity Theft happens, you want to detect it immediately, not two months after it happens.

2. Monitor Your Monthly Bank Statements

Look at every bank statement that you get.  Look for deductions to any account that you did not make.  Are your statements arriving about the same time every month.  If it is a week past the time you normally receive it, contact your bank immediately and see if it has been held up for a reason.
 

3. Check Your Credit Report On A Regular Basis

Credit reports contain all kinds of financial information about you, including what credit cards you have and how you pay your bills. There are three major nationwide consumer reporting agencies that track this information and the law requires that each of them provide you with a free copy of your credit report once every 12 months if you request it.

If an identity thief opens up credit accounts using your name, these accounts should show up on your credit report. To find out, order a copy of your credit reports.  See the Topic on Free Credit Reports.

Once you get your reports, inspect them carefully. Look for inquiries from companies you haven't contacted, charges or debts on your accounts that you can't explain and accounts you didn't open. 
See the Topic on Checking Your Credit Report for more information.

For more information on the early detection of an Identity Theft, see the Topic on Signs of Identity Theft.

What About Using A Credit Monitoring Service?

There are many commercial services that will monitor your credit reports and watch for suspicious activity and alert you to changes to your accounts.  It can take some of the burden of monitoring off of your shoulders, but they do charge a fee. 
Prices and services vary widely between the companies.  Some of the companies monitor just one of the three major consumer reporting agencies.

If you're thinking about signing up for a service, make sure you know what specific services you are getting for your money, before you sign up.  Check out the company with your local Better Business Bureau, with the consumer protection agency and also your state Attorney General to see if they have any complaints on file.
 

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