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Identity Safety While Traveling #kIDSure

Posted by Alaina Frederick on Jul 20, 2012 in Lifestyle

identity theft protection at the beach I’ll be totally honest with you all and say that any time myself or our family has traveled I’ve never given it a single thought as to the possibility of identity theft.

We take the laptop, mostly for the kids movies, on trips more than a day in length. Not to mention the iPad, iPod and phones that are in tow all the time.

If you are like us your computer is your gateway to your life. Username and passwords are stored in the computer automatically filling in the boxes when certain websites are pulled up. Your email, bank accounts, medical records, and well basically your life is in that small electronic capsule. I’ve never thought ‘What if it were to be stolen?’ while away from home – heck even at home!

There are ways to avoid identity theft while on vacation and most are really no brainers when you think about them.

Identity Safety Tips for Traveling

Clean the wallet and purse out. When on vacation you aren’t thinking about the contents of your wallet or purse. Pickpockets love crowded areas and those with cameras dangling from their necks and area road maps in their hands are prime targets. Men should keep their wallets in their front pockets. Clean your wallet or purse out of anything that isn’t 100% necessary for that days trip. Extra money and cards should be left in the hotel safe.

Avoid the social chatter. With today’s social networks all the rage it’s very easy for a potential burglar to know who’s going to be away from home for extensive periods. So wait until you’ve returned to share about your fantastic trip. Don’t forget to have a neighbor get your mail and newspaper as nothing screams “Rob Me” like a pile of newspapers at the end of your driveway.

Get the latest spyware. Make sure your items are protected by anti-spyware and passwords. Not all free ‘hot spots’ are safe so make sure your data is encrypted from those hanging around trying to catch those checking their bank accounts. It’s also great to use a lock to secure your laptop to the table should you get distracted to deter from someone swiping it right then and there.

pickpocket identity theft
It’s not often that families get to travel together so when they do it’s important that the time be spent together and not worrying if your identity has been stolen. In addition to the few above tips you can also use credit monitoring services to alert you of any suspicious activity not just for you but your children too.

As I’ve mentioned before I was totally shocked to find activity on my children’s credit reports and had it not been for Identity Guard^® I would have not known about it for a long, long time. It’s also nice to know that should something happen on a family camping trip or perhaps even a dream vacation to Alaska and Vancouver, Canada I’ll be alerted of it in time to do something about it.

This kind of protection has become a necessity in today’s totally connected online environment where spyware, malware, keylogging and other online threats are only a click away. Identity Guard^® is on your side to keep pace with all the information that’s spinning around “out there” about you, and can help you keep your identity safe.

Visit IdentityGuard.com to learn more about their services, especially their kID Sure^℠ program that is the most comprehensive child ID theft protection available.

Have you traveled recently – what are your tips for protecting yourself and your identity?

I was provided free of charge the ability to use and review the kIDSure and IDENTITY GUARD® products. I will also be compensated monetarily for my time and efforts. This being said all opinions – and freaking out over my boys safety and security – are all of my own pondering.

Protecting Children Online: Safety Contract #kIDSure

Posted by Alaina Frederick on Jul 5, 2012 in Lifestyle

online safety for kids Now that Hunter is old enough to read he’s been asking to go online after seeing “.com” on his toys. I’m not sure how he put two and two together but it happened.

He’s been wanting to go to “l-e-g-o ‘pencil dot’ c-o-m“. That is how he asked to go to the website the first time now it’s just Lego.com. He loves playing the games and looking at the new building sets. It’s all wonderful until I notice that the computer screen has nothing on it that it should.

Time to realize that the kids aren’t so innocent anymore and predators are lurking everywhere waiting to get at their information. There is only so much that I can do to protect them much of it is going to have to be on them to know right from wrong. To take our guidance and apply it to their everyday life.

So, how do you talk to your kids about using the computer and being safe online? Since I’m just hitting this threshold for the first time I am turning to father google to get some good child identity theft tips.

Teaching Your Children Online Safety

Some things can’t be taught so the first line of defense is proper supervision. The computer, tablet, and other items connected to the internet should be used in areas where they can been seen and observed.
Talk to your children in age appropriate terms what is and is not allowed. In addition to teaching them boundaries use parental controls to limit their access to only specific websites.
Children should never fill out forms or give out personal information. They may see a form to enter on a website they are allowed on however they need to know that mom or dad is the only one allowed to fill it out.
Make sure they know they can confide in you. Our kids know that sometimes other windows do popup on the computer and it’s not their fault. They know that it’s OK to come to mom and I’ll fix the screen. Sometimes kids will just keep clicking in hopes that it goes away, so it’s important they know they are not in trouble.

Create An Online Safety Contract

Once your children have been told what is expected of them while being online it may be time to create a online safety contract they can sign. Making it ‘official’ sometimes helps further engrain the rules – plus they can’t say later “but mom [insert super whinny voice] you never told me I couldn’t [insert sweet innocent batty eyes looking at ya]”

Here are some possible items to highlight:

No sharing of personal information. This includes their address, phone number, email address, parents place of work, their school or school mascot, or other identifying information.
Never make plans to meet up with someone meet online even if in a special area meant only for children.
Let parents know if something ‘weird’ pops up or doesn’t seem quite right
Use the computer for fun and education. Online time is not meant for cyberbullying. Child will talk with parents if they feel someone is being mean to them.
Only people who will know passwords for gaming sites, social networks, and other locations is the child and the parents. Passwords should not be shared – even with best friends – under no circumstances.
No downloading or installing of anything until mom or dad have given the okay.

In addition to proper supervision, talking with your children, and setting up parental controls to help protect your child you can also use services like Identity Guard® kID Sure℠ to monitor activity in their name. You don’t want to be filling out applications for school loans to find out that your child is thousands of dollars in debt for buying a boat when you live in the desert!

Because yes identity thieves don’t just take advantage of adults, Identity Guard® now offers its latest innovation — kID Sure℠, the most comprehensive child ID theft protection available — to help families stay better protected. This kind of protection has become a necessity in today’s totally connected online environment where spyware, malware, keylogging and other online threats are only a click away.

If you do happen to find out that your child’s identity regardless if it was your child that gave out the information you can use these resources for identity theft victims for helping recover and get back your child’s life.

Do you have other items that should be added to a online safety contract with your children? Share your tips and suggestions below!!

Protecting Our Children: Identity Theft at Tax Time

Posted by Alaina Frederick on Mar 31, 2012 in Lifestyle

children identity theft For me April is typically the month of celebrating the earth, doing spring cleaning, and yes finalizing all the paperwork from the prior year. Taxes – oh Uncle Sam how you make me cringe every Spring!

One thing that I never really thought of was identity theft when doing my taxes – let alone protecting my children at tax time. I typically log onto the same old site. Enter my information, print out the needed forms, send everything off and forget about it until that lovely cha-ching sound hits our bank account.

Most do the same I suspect with the ease of online filing for those that don’t have complicated taxes it’s quick, fast and affordable. I do know one place I would not go for my taxes is this pop-up tax place in our local box store as the guy that works there just scares me. I’m not trying to judge or anything but they should require him to leave his snuff, shaggy beard and cowboy boots at home.

Sadly, tax time is a thieves dream. Mailboxes full of social security numbers and everything one needs to become you! Here’s a real-life story I was really surprised to read and have honestly never even thought about.

“In one scam, a thief created a company called MRS and, at tax time, spent her time raiding mailboxes in numerous neighborhoods. Wherever she found checks made out to the IRS she simply changed the “I” to an “M” and deposited the checks in her own bank account.

In total, the thief netted around $500,000. Months later, when the IRS notified the victims that their tax returns had not been received, the thief and her company were long gone.” ~ Identity Guard Tax Risks

Yeah, for real!

So then when we think about the fact that our precious children will be having their social security numbers floating through cyberspace and the mail at this time of year it puts your guard up. Ever since signing my kids up for the kIDSure program I have been more cautious and thinking twice before tossing any piece of mail or document.

Tips for Safety At Tax Time

Be suspicious of any calls or emails purporting to be from the IRS, no matter what the issue. The IRS will always send you a letter in the mail before contacting you in another way. They rarely call and never email you.
Never confirm your Social Security number or bank account details by email or over the phone.
If your bank or employer has been taken over lately, be wary of any calls asking that you confirm your tax information or employment status.
Guard your mail, because it’s especially attractive at tax time. Ideally, you should have your mail delivered to your front door — not to a curbside mailbox. Collect your mail as soon as you can and take your tax returns directly to the post office for mailing.
If you plan to use an online tax preparation service, make sure you stick with a reputable one that has adequate security measures in place. Be wary of emails offering such services; they’re often bogus. Also, be careful when typing in the URL or Web address of an online service. If you misspell the name, you could end up on a fraudulent lookalike site that mimics the real one.

I use to have a few boxes full of important documents and old tax returns. However, thinking about all the what if’s like if we ever got robbed or if there was a fire or a storm or the box got thrown away – you know the long list of if it’s gonna happen it’s gonna happen.

To help avoid this and to try and keep things safer and more organized we purchased a a fire/watersafe box, a document scanner, and a number of USB and CD’s. Then a few long, butt-falling-asleep weekends later we had all of the documents scanned and organized onto the CD’s and USB drives. I did both as you never know if 4 years from now computers will no longer have CD drives! My next task is to get a shredder and make sure that each and every document is throughly shredded.

Not only are all the CD’s and USB drive in our fire box but they are also password protected as well. So even if someone was to open the box and see what was on it it would take a few more steps to get to that information.

More Tax Time Identity Safety Tips

If you plan to use an online tax preparation service, make sure you stick with a reputable one that has adequate security measures in place. Be wary of emails offering such services; they’re often bogus.
Also, be careful when typing in the URL or Web address of an online service. If you misspell the name, you could end up on a fraudulent lookalike site that mimics the real one.
Make sure your computer is free of malware, such as computer viruses, and spyware that can steal a copy of your Social Security number or bank account password.
Choose your tax preparer carefully, and don’t be afraid to ask important security questions, such as how your information is protected in their offices during and after preparation, how long they keep a copy of your tax return, and whether they conduct background checks on their employees.
If you owe money to the IRS, try to pay it online. If you have to pay by check, spell out the name Internal Revenue Service because it’s harder to forge than the letters IRS. And don’t drop the check in a mailbox; take it to the post office. Your safety is worth the extra effort.
Don’t email tax information or returns to your accountant. Email is not a secure way to send any document.
If you make copies of your return on a photocopying machine, be aware that many machines keep a copy of your pages in short term memory! Not so good if you use a photocopier in a public location.
If you plan to keep a copy of your tax return on your computer, make sure it’s password-protected and encrypted to protect it from prying eyes.
Check your credit report immediately after tax time and a few months later, too, to make sure your personal information hasn’t been stolen and is not being used against you.