FAQs - Member
- Do I have to become a member?
- No. Membership does have its advantages and in most cases it is much more economical to become a member of PCS.
- How long is my membership good for?
- All memberships are good for one year from the date of registration.
- What are the effects of identity theft?
- Once identity thieves have your personal information, they use it in a variety of ways.
• They may call your credit card issuer to change the billing address on your credit card account. The imposter then runs up charges on your account. Because your bills are being sent to a different address, it may be some time before you realize there's a problem.
• They may open new credit card accounts in your name. When they use the credit cards and don't pay the bills, the delinquent accounts are reported on your credit report.
• They may establish phone or wireless service in your name.
• They may open a bank account in your name and write bad checks on that account.
• They may counterfeit checks or credit or debit cards, or authorize electronic transfers in your name, and drain your bank account.
• They may file for bankruptcy under your name to avoid paying debts they've incurred under your name, or to avoid eviction.
• They may buy a car by taking out an auto loan in your name.
• They may get identification such as a driver's license issued with their picture, in your name.
• They may get a job or file fraudulent tax returns in your name.
• They may give your name to the police during an arrest. If they don't show up for their court date, a warrant for arrest is issued in your name.
- How can I tell if I'm a victim of identity theft?
- If an identity thief is opening credit accounts in your name, these accounts are likely to show up on your credit report. To find out, order a copy of your credit reports. Once you get your reports, review them carefully. Look for inquiries from companies you haven't contacted, accounts you didn't open, and debts on your accounts that you can't explain. Check that information, like your Social Security number, address(es), name or initials, and employers are correct. If you find fraudulent or inaccurate information, get it removed. Continue to check your credit reports periodically, especially for the first year after you discover the identity theft, to make sure no new fraudulent activity has occurred.
Stay alert for other signs of identity theft, like:
• failing to receive bills or other mail. Follow up with creditors if your bills don't arrive on time. A missing bill could mean an identity thief has taken over your account and changed your billing address to cover his tracks.
• receiving credit cards that you didn't apply for.
• being denied credit, or being offered less favorable credit terms, like a high interest rate, for no apparent reason.
• getting calls or letters from debt collectors or businesses about merchandise or services you didn't buy.
- What should I do if my personal information has been lost or stolen?
- If you've lost personal information or identification, or if it has been stolen from you, taking certain steps quickly can minimize the potential for identity theft. This can be very time consuming even when you know what you are doing. Make sure to keep very good organized notes. Most likely you will be contacting these companies multiple times.
If you are protected by and Identity Theft Program through PCS, simply call us first. If you are not, you may consider our fully managed recovery program that will simplify this entire process and restore your identity to its original good standing. If you elect to proceed on your own, you should contact the following companies and government offices.
Financial accounts: Close accounts, like credit cards and bank accounts, immediately. When you open new accounts, place passwords on them. Avoid using your mother's maiden name, your birth date, the last four digits of your Social Security number or your phone number, or a series of consecutive numbers.
Social Security number: Call the toll-free fraud number of any of the three nationwide consumer reporting companies and place an initial fraud alert on your credit reports. An alert can help stop someone from opening new credit accounts in your name.
Driver's license/other government issued identification: Contact the agency that issued the license or other identification document. Follow its procedures to cancel the document and to get a replacement. Ask the agency to flag your file so that no one else can get a license or any other identification document from them in your name.
Once you have taken these precautions, watch for signs that your information is being misused.
If your information has been misused, file a report about the theft with the police, and file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission, as well. If another crime was committed - for example, if your purse or wallet was stolen or your house or car was broken into - report it to the police immediately.
- How can I minimize my risk?
- When it comes to identity theft, you can't entirely control whether you will become a victim. The best way to stay safe is to be informed and follow the above advice. There are additional things you can do to minimize your risk.
Enroll in Credit Monitoring. This will keep you alert to what is happing to your credit and whether it is being misused. Consider an Identity Theft Protection program to assist you in the event that your identity is stolen.
If you ask, only the last four digits of your Social Security number will appear on your credit reports. Place passwords on your credit card, bank, and phone accounts. Avoid using easily available information like your mother's maiden name, your birth date, the last four digits of your Social Security number or your phone number, or a series of consecutive numbers. When opening new accounts, you may find that many businesses still have a line on their applications for your mother's maiden name. Ask if you can use a password instead.
Secure personal information in your home, especially if you have roommates, employ outside help, or are having work done in your home.
Ask about information security procedures in your workplace or at businesses, doctor's offices or other institutions that collect your personally identifying information. Find out who has access to your personal information and verify that it is handled securely. Ask about the disposal procedures for those records as well. Find out if your information will be shared with anyone else. If so, ask how your information can be kept confidential.
Don't give out personal information on the phone, through the mail, or on the Internet unless you've initiated the contact or are sure you know who you're dealing with. Identity thieves are clever, and have posed as representatives of banks, Internet service providers (ISPs), and even government agencies to get people to reveal their Social Security number, mother's maiden name, account numbers, and other identifying information. Before you share any personal information, confirm that you are dealing with a legitimate organization. Check an organization's website by typing its URL in the address line, rather than cutting and pasting it. Many companies post scam alerts when their name is used improperly. Or call customer service using the number listed on your account statement or in the telephone book. Treat your mail and trash carefully.
Deposit your outgoing mail in post office collection boxes or at your local post office, rather than in an unsecured mailbox. Promptly remove mail from your mailbox. If you're planning to be away from home and can't pick up your mail, call the U.S. Postal Service at 1-800-275-8777 to request a vacation hold. The Postal Service will hold your mail at your local post office until you can pick it up or are home to receive it.
To thwart an identity thief who may pick through your trash or recycling bins to capture your personal information, tear or shred your charge receipts, copies of credit applications, insurance forms, physician statements, checks and bank statements, expired charge cards that you're discarding, and credit offers you get in the mail. To opt out of receiving offers of credit in the mail, call: 1-888-5-OPTOUT (1-888-567-8688). The three nationwide consumer reporting companies use the same toll-free number to let consumers choose not to receive credit offers based on their lists. Note: You will be asked to provide your Social Security number which the consumer reporting companies need to match you with your file.
Don't carry your Social Security number card; leave it in a secure place.
Give your Social Security number only when absolutely necessary, and ask to use other types of identifiers. If your state uses your Social Security number as your driver's license number, ask to substitute another number. Do the same if your health insurance company uses your Social Security number as your policy number.
Carry only the identification information and the credit and debit cards that you'll actually need when you go out.
Be cautious when responding to promotions. Identity thieves may create phony promotional offers to get you to give them your personal information.
Keep your purse or wallet in a safe place at work; do the same with copies of administrative forms that have your sensitive personal information.
When ordering new checks, pick them up from the bank instead of having them mailed to your home mailbox.
- I have a computer and use the Internet. What should I be concerned about?
- You may be careful about locking your doors and windows, and keeping your personal papers in a secure place. Depending on what you use your personal computer for, an identity thief may not need to set foot in your house to steal your personal information. You may store your Social Security number, financial records, tax returns, birth date, and bank account numbers on your computer. These tips can help you keep your computer – and the personal information it stores – safe.
Virus protection software should be updated regularly, and patches for your operating system and other software programs should be installed to protect against intrusions and infections that can lead to the compromise of your computer files or passwords. Ideally, virus protection software should be set to automatically update each week. The Windows XP operating system also can be set to automatically check for patches and download them to your computer.
Do not open files sent to you by strangers, or click on hyperlinks or download programs from people you don't know. Be careful about using file-sharing programs. Opening a file could expose your system to a computer virus or a program known as "spyware," which could capture your passwords or any other information as you type it into your keyboard.
Use a firewall program, especially if you use a high-speed Internet connection like cable, DSL or T-1 that leaves your computer connected to the Internet 24 hours a day. The firewall program will allow you to stop uninvited access to your computer. Without it, hackers can take over your computer, access the personal information stored on it, or use it to commit other crimes.
Use a secure browser – software that encrypts or scrambles information you send over the Internet – to guard your online transactions. Be sure your browser has the most up-to-date encryption capabilities by using the latest version available from the manufacturer. You also can download some browsers for free over the Internet. When submitting information, look for the "lock" icon on the browser's status bar to be sure your information is secure during transmission.
Try not to store financial information on your laptop unless absolutely necessary. If you do, use a strong password with a combination of letters (upper and lower case), numbers and symbols. A good way to create a strong password is to think of a memorable phrase and use the first letter of each word as your password, converting some letters into numbers that resemble letters. For example, "I love Felix; he's a good cat," would become 1LFHA6c. Don't use an automatic log-in feature that saves your user name and password, and always log off when you're finished. That way, if your laptop is stolen, it's harder for a thief to access your personal information.
Before you dispose of a computer, delete all the personal information it stored. Deleting files using the keyboard or mouse commands or reformatting your hard drive may not be enough because the files may stay on the computer's hard drive, where they may be retrieved easily. Use a "wipe" utility program to overwrite the entire hard drive.
Look for website privacy policies. They should answer questions about maintaining accuracy, access, security, and control of personal information collected by the site, how the information will be used, and whether it will be provided to third parties. If you don't see a privacy policy or if you can't understand it consider doing business elsewhere.
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