An effective identity theft solution can’t only be the work of a single entity. You can take all the necessary steps to prevent identity theft, for example, but if your bank does not set up a proactive identity theft solution, then all the steps you took may be all for naught.

For the solution to identity theft to be successful, it should be the result of the collaboration among the consumer, industry, and the government:

For the Consumers

There are several ways that you can protect yourself from identity theft, you should take the necessary steps to prevent identity theft and it all boils down to two very important things, one is your computer habits, and second is the way you convey and receive personal data.

Protect your computer habits
-    Make use of passwords to protect your personal information
-    Visit only secure websites
-    Keep your anti-virus software updated and run periodic scans

Transmittal and reception of personal data
-    Make sure your firewall is set up to regulate data coming in and out of your hard drive
-    Make sure that your monthly banks statements and credit card billing comes to you securely. Having a locked mail box is one of them.
-    Avoid having to give out your SSN or driver’s license by offering to provide an alternate identification.

For The Industry

You can ensure that the industry does it part in protecting your identity, you must ensure that they have taken steps to prevent identity theft from happening in their establishment. As a consumer you have the right to demand a satisfactory service from them and you have the right to take your business elsewhere if they fail to meet your standards and you also have the ability to let others know of their dissatisfactory service.

The Government

Congress is in the process of crafting more stringent federal laws that penalize database managers who have second-rate security. Laws are also in place that allows you to have greater control of identity theft targets like your credit, for instance. Half the states have set us Credit Alert laws so you can prevent new credit cards from being opened under your name.

The observance of stricter identity theft solution probably set e-government in America a few years back compared to countries, but considering the dangers of the alternative, not many people are argumentative.

The consumer, the industry, and the government should work hand in hand in order to prevent identity theft. This will also ensure that steps to prevent identity theft taken by each entity will be successful, and that the problems it can bring will be brought to a minimal.

A well known computer identity theft of today is called phishing or phishing scam, true to hacker approach, phishing means, well, as it sounds like fishing, by baiting individuals to divulge personal information using two baits. The first one would be an e-mail asking you to divulge your personal data in an e-mail reply and the other one will be a bogus website that appears to be legitimate and looks exactly like the original site, that anyone can easily be fooled to believe that it is the original site.

Phishing Scam – How Does It Work?

Usually the target will receive an e-mail that seems to come from a legitimate company that you transact business with. Now you have to remember that this may look like a legitimate e-mail coming from the company. There are two ways the identity thief can con you into giving the information he needs.

One is that the e-mail will tell you that your account has been compromised or that you’re account will be closed if you do not reply, so it will ask you to reply to the e-mail with your personal information, and you, if you don’t know any better, will actually reply and send your personal information to the thief, without really realizing what you did.

The other way phishing scam works is still using e-mail, you maybe asked to click on a link that will direct you to a website, and this website will look exactly like the original site. The e-mail will ask you to visit that bogus website and confirm your account information and since the fake website looks exactly like the original one, you will innocently type in your personal details, bank account number, passwords and PIN numbers and once you’ve done this, you become the instant victim of identity theft.

When They Ran Out of Bat

Internet identity theft can work even without bait. When phishers do this, it’s called pharming. Pharming is a bit more technical than phishing since it involves installing malicious code in your computer or your network server.

The more technical way a pharmer can commit identity theft is by sending out an e-mail that can affect you even if you don’t open the attachment, this works simply by opening the e-mail, a virus will install itself on your pc, more often than not, without your knowledge. And with this malware installed, trying to visit a legitimate site will just direct you to the bogus one.