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What’s in your wallet—a social security number?
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Not too long ago, a client was in the Windy City to take in a show. The relaxation of the weekend getaway was interrupted on Saturday evening when her purse, containing personal identification including her social security number, was stolen at a restaurant just a couple of hours before show time.
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She immediately contacted the credit card company to cancel her stolen credit card. The credit card company informed her that her credit card had already been used fraudulently for a $300 purchase at a major department store and that the thief attempted to use her credit card multiple times thereafter, but it was denied. This credit card fraud and identity theft all took place within 20 minutes after the theft!
Fortunately, my client paid attention to some of the basics of preventing identity theft. She was only carrying one credit card and her driver's license, but unfortunately, she had her Medicare health insurance card in her purse.
On Monday, she received a fraud alert from her credit monitoring service. She discovered that the thief applied for a credit account by using her name, birth date—shown on her driver's license and social security number—shown on her Medicare card.
The Medicare card she was carrying disclosed her social security number—a vital piece of information to an identity thief. Many people are under the mistaken impression that they will not receive medical care unless they carry a health insurance identification card. Don't worry, the EMT's won't leave you by the side of the road to die, if you are unable to present a Medicare or health insurance card! They will treat and care for you.
How common is this scenario? Another woman called me a couple of weeks later. She too was visiting Chicago for the weekend, and someone stole the wallet from her purse that was left unattended in a Chicago restaurant. Her purse contained a debit card, a driver’s license and a social security card. In her case, thieves drained several thousand dollars from her bank account several days after she canceled her debit card. We suspect that her social security number in combination with her debit account number gave thieves access to her bank account.
Do this now! Check your wallet or purse for any identification cards that display your social security number. Remove them now. You do not need to carry them. Limit the number of credit cards you carry to one. Carrying a credit card instead of a debit card is a better financial choice because "credit" means you are using OPM—other people's money.
What about when the doctor's office asks for your Medicare card? Do you know your Medicare Card number? (Of course you do.) Give them your social security number, and tell them you do not carry the card because of the threat of id theft. If you have a health insurance card that displays your social security number, request a new card with a generic number from your provider.
The Federal Government is taking steps to minimize the use of social security numbers in the Federal Government because of recommendations made by the President’s Task Force on Identity Theft, which was established in 2006. However, it will take years to issue and fund new Medicare Cards. A larger concern from my investigations is that state and local governments do little to protect our personal identifiers such our social security number and drivers identification. That will be the subject of a future article.
You might also enjoy these:
- Identity theft, privacy and information security—executive coaching (part 1)
- Identity Theft: More than Account Fraud
- Identity theft education—what’s your objective?
- Business Owner's Toolkit Radio Interview with Joe Campana.
(Select Information Security is for Small Businesses Too, if not selected.
Drag slider to 18:00 to go directly to the interview segment on the Red Flags Rule.)
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- Ask Dr. Privacy
- Consumer Red Flags
- FTC's Identity Theft Site
- Take Charge: Fighting Back Against Identity Theft (FTC Pub.)
- Victims--Follow These Steps: Fraud Alert, Close Accounts, Police Report, FTC Complaint
- File an Identity Theft Complaint with the FTC
- Pre-approved Credit Card Offer Opt Out (888-567-8688)
- Credit Reports--Official Free Annual Credit Report (877-322-8228)
- Medical Information Bureau--Free ANnual Report (866-692-6901)
- Social Security Administration--Annual Statement (800-772-1213)
