Is your Wallet safe from Identity theft?
Good identity theft protection begins with your wallet. Your wallet might be full of old sales slips and credit cards you forgot about. “What’s in your wallet?” Aside Capital One, you might have items you shouldn’t have, and can do without. There’s no need to carry your Social Security Card, as you can easily memorize your number and you will likely never need it, unless conducting financial business or applying for a job. The fewer items you have in your wallet the better off you are.
Throwing away sales slips containing account numbers is a serious mistake, as dumpster diving still accounts for the vast majority of identity frauds. They should be shredded in a good paper shredder.
Get rid of your Visa Debit card, unlike a credit card, there are no protections. A debit card is a direct pipeline to your checking account. Get an ATM that doesn’t have the Visa or MasterCard logo from your bank instead.
Watch out for video rental cards and library cards. Even those can cause you a lot of problems if stolen.
Many stores used to ask you to put your social security number on your check when paying by check. If asked for this, politely explain to the sales clerk that you do not wish to give it out due to your concerns about identity theft.
