Everyday, you engage in transactions that require the sharing of personal information.  You may share personal details when you pay bills, make purchases, pay taxes, rent accommodation, open bank accounts, order new cheques or credit cards, register a car, get insured, rent a video or log on to a computer.

To complete these transactions, you often provide information such as your name, address, phone number, driver's license number, or sometimes even bank account or credit card numbers and tax file number.  Elements of your personal information exist in every business or organisation with which you have ever conducted a transaction.

Often large amounts of information are requested from you which the business doesn't really need. You should aim to provide the minimum amount of information about yourself and if the request for information seems inappropriate, ask why it is needed.

While it may never be possible to stop identity theft entirely, there are a number of very simple safeguards you can take to protect yourself from becoming a victim of this type of crime.

Order a copy of your credit report regularly

• Your credit report contains important information about you, your credit history and most credit applications made in your name. By checking your own credit report regularly you can often catch any unauthorised activity which may indicate your identity has been stolen.

To check your credit file (contact all the relevant organisations):

• Dun and Bradstreet 13 23 33 
• Tasmanian Collection Service 03 6213 5599 (Tasmanians only) 
• Veda Advantage 1300 762 207

Passwords

• Avoid using obvious passwords such as telephone numbers, birth dates or your mother's maiden name. Instead use passwords and Personal Identification Numbers (PINs) that will be difficult for someone else to figure out. 
• DO NOT use the same password on different accounts, such as bank, video card, internet service provider. 
• DO NOT write your passwords down or store them on your computer.
• Consider buying an IronKey security USB which has 256-bit military encryption, password manager, password recovery, secure websurfing and more - this will enable you to set-up unique and complicated passwords for each of your online accounts that you do not have to remember.

Secure your personal information

• If possible, secure all personal information at home in a lockable filing cabinet or safe. 
• Having a secure place for your personal documents is particularly important if you share accommodation or have trades or cleaning services in or around your home.
• Collect new cheque books or credit cards in person from the bank. 
• DO NOT leave documents such as registration papers, driver's licenses, utility bills or traffic fines in your car.

DO NOT carry personal information unless you have to

• Unless you really need to, DO NOT carry important documents around with you such as your passport and birth certificate.
• NEVER carry your PIN in your wallet with the ATM card and only carry the ATM and credit cards you need. 
• Be wary of people acting suspiciously at ATMs, and avoid using ATM or EFTPOS facilities that look as if they have been tampered with.

Destroy personal information before disposal

• Before placing old bills, records or expired cards in the rubbish ensure all identifying information is destroyed by tearing or cutting up before throwing them in the rubbish. A home shredder can be a good investment.
• Avoid giving personal information out over the phone, by mail or on the internet.
• Never give out personal information to persons who you do not know and trust - anyone can pretend to be from a bank or other trusted agency - do not be afraid to say NO and seek to contact the agency directly.
• Only provide the minimum information necessary to those with whom YOU have initiated contact.
• Be suspicious when things do not seem right - unsolicited offers that seem too good to be true ARE - they are attempts to defraud you!

Secure your mail

• Make sure you have a secure and lockable letterbox.
• Make sure your letterbox is large enough to accept and hold mail in the quantity and size you normally receive and remove mail daily. 
• If you are going away, have it held at the post office or request a trusted friend or neighbor empty retrieve it daily.
• If the volume of mail drops off substantially, check with the post office to see if anyone has filed a change of address form in your name.

Check your billing and account records carefully

• Carefully check all transactions on your bank and credit card accounts and follow up if your bills or accounts do not arrive on time.

Limit the amount of credit you have in accounts

• Use an account with a low credit limit for transactions made by telephone and on the internet, so that if the account is misused, the loss will be minimised.

Write cheques and fill out forms carefully

• Make sure that you fill out cheques and forms carefully so that they cannot be easily altered. 
• Put a line through unused spaces on cheques and other forms.

List all your account details

• Keep a list of all your accounts and credit cards, including the contact numbers in case of theft or loss in a secure location - it is important to act quickly if personal information is compromised.

Remove your name from mailing lists

• If you receive mail addressed to you from companies you have not had any dealings with, or receive pre-approved credit cards that you did not apply for, do not just throw these in the rubbish and forget about them. Contact the company or credit provider making the offer and ask that your name be removed from any further mailing lists. 
• It is particularly important to take this action if you are unexpectedly offered a pre-approved credit card.

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