Your Social Security Number is at Risk
How To Know if You’re Impacted by a Massive Breach?
The primary concern when your birthday and Social Security number are compromised is identity theft. These are critical pieces of information that bad actors can exploit to open new lines of credit. In today’s environment, these two pieces of information are often all that’s needed to set up accounts, obtain loans, open bank accounts, and even rent or purchase vehicles.
If you’re not vigilant, identity theft can occur without your knowledge. To protect your finances, the best approach is to freeze and monitor your credit. Freezing your credit with all three major agencies—Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion—prevents anyone from opening new credit cards or taking out loans in your name. If you need to open a new account, you can unfreeze your credit easily, a process that only takes a few minutes and is free. Even if your identity hasn’t been stolen, the Federal Trade Commission advises that anyone can benefit from freezing their credit. While your credit is frozen, you can still use your existing cards and accounts without interference when applying for jobs, renting a new apartment, or buying insurance.
Adding fraud alerts to your credit reports provides an additional layer of security. A fraud alert requires extra authentication steps to ensure that the person applying for credit is indeed you. Typically, lenders will contact you and ask additional questions to confirm your identity.
Additionally, you’re entitled to a free credit report every year to check for any suspicious activity. While identity theft monitoring services are available for a fee, there are free steps you can take to safeguard your identity. Using unique passwords, enabling multi-factor authentication, and staying alert to phishing scams are all effective measures.
It’s crucial not to underestimate the importance of protecting yourself. Taking these steps can make it significantly harder for attackers to succeed with your data. If everyone followed this advice, many attackers would find it more challenging, costly, and time-consuming to cause harm. Let’s not make it easy for them.
