Some of those guys...and ladies... were very good. So good many times that I used to joke that private industry was crazy not to hire them instead of sending them to prison! Regardless, in my nearly 30 years with the FBI, I saw many of them leave innocent families and businesses devastated with financial loss and at the same time, wreak havoc on the personal identity of many.
What are the suspects names? Well, that depends on what day it is....
While "Routines" can be boring, many don't realize where to draw the line between the things that matter, and the things that don't. Failure to know the differences can only bring problems to our daily lives. Fact is, with regard to your own security, "routines" need to be established and followed relentlessly.
Case in point? The "Routines" on how you handle your identity. Theft of identity on the Net is a scary ordeal for many. But I can guarantee you that while millions are trying to cover their butt on the Net, they've left the barn door open on the home front.
Having been a recent divorce statistic, and moving into an apartment complex, I couldn't help notice what people throw away in the dumpster near by. You see, "garbage" is a great tool for the would be scammer and grabbing people's garbage has been taught in the "underground" for decades. Right now, I can go to our dumpster some evening, extract the paperwork from the bags, and I can assume the identity of probably everyone in my entire apartment complex!
Here's what I'll find and what I can do:
- I'm going to pull your social security number from various bank and credit card papers.
- I'm going to get your bank account numbers from your statements you threw away.
- I'm going to have an opportunity to print checks on my home computer with your account number and cash them!
- I'm going to figure out your pin numbers and access your ATM.
- I'm going to find out where your credit cards are coming from and ask for a duplicate, using your identity.
- I'm going to find out about your employment, where you work and what you make.
- I'm going to find out a lot about you, get your phone number from your garbage, and call you up as a rep from a company and even get you to tell me more on the phone!
- I'm going to probably find out all about your family life. That will give me a chance to then duplicate the identity of your spouse and any other money makers in the household.
- All in all, I'm going to assume your identity, I'll bring along a drug addicted female friend to assume your spouse's identity, and within weeks time, wreak havoc on your credit cards, bank account and personal life in general.
The list goes on and on and I don't have to access the Internet once to do any of it. Not once! I don't have to hack anyone's computer and I don't have to spend time figuring out credit card coding. You've given me everything I need.
By the way, I do hope you're aware that a majority of Vital Statistic Offices nationwide, CAN NOT and DO NOT, match birth certificates with death certificates! Many are making the effort, but are far from being there. With just a few details from your trash, I can walk into most Vital Stat Offices and obtain a certified copy of your birth certificate, actually whether dead or alive!
Right now on both the Internet and mail order, you can buy "How-To" guides with all you need to know about stealing someone's identity. These "guides" actually started some 30 years ago by many involved in the early radical days on the college campus, and are still around today, updated and better. Accessible by anyone. A price we pay for Freedom Of The Press.
Advice? BE CONSISTENT with your concern for your identity! On the Net, and off the Net! Set up a routine in your family on how to handle critical paperwork, and follow it at all times. Shred it with a cheap device you can buy at Office Max or keep it in a separate bag and burn it!
Now, go find out what you're offering up in today's trash! Someone is dying to get their hands on it.....
