ID Theft is not always computer related

The newspapers scare us all about wholesale computer ID theft, but most cases begin with lost or stolen wallets or purses. In 68 percent of reported cases the stolen information was obtained offline. Checks, credit card statements, and applications are often taken out of mailboxes in rural areas where people tend to leave mail unguarded, and people send out mail with checks and other information unaware that the red flag standing up is an attractive target for identity theives. Simple steps can help -- arrange for the post office to hold your mail when out of town and drop off mail with sensitive information or checks at a secured mailbox at the post office. It is disappointing, that something as simple as one's mailbox has become a source of risk, but it is reality.