We’ve all heard of identity theft, but most of us don’t know exactly what it involves and how to protect ourselves. Charlie Scott, CEO of identity theft prevention service Fraudlock, spoke to Virgin Media exclusively about the dangers of ID theft and how to prevent it.
At the most common end of ID theft, most of us are aware of 'skimming' – when thieves manipulate a cash machine to copy your card. It’s a quick process and they’ll have a camera above you or an individual whose job it is to watch you enter your PIN.
"It feels embarrassing to cover up your PIN – you don’t want the supermarket check-out girl to think you’re accusing her of peeking!" says Scott. "But this should be common practice. Whether you’re at a petrol station, in a shop or at a cash point on the high street, always hide your PIN."
"It’s also a bad idea to give a mate your PIN so they can get money out for you. If you become a victim of theft, you don’t want that person to be a suspect."
Luckily banks are good at spotting fraudulent charges, and will often contact you to alert you to the fraud. It can then be rectified quickly. Much more disturbing is the risk of 'new line of credit' ID theft...
