The Freedom From Debt Blog

Most of us are well aware of phishing scams, foreign lotteries, and other common frauds and have taken the necessary precautions to protect ourselves from these scams.  However, there are several other forms of identity theft that are a bit less publicized. 

Fraudulent Credit Card Charges

We all know that it is very possible for our credit card numbers/information to be stolen from us without us even knowing.  Credit card thieves do not even have to ever physically come into contact with us or our credit cards to swipe our info; in some cases thieves are able to steal this information from legitimate companies.  Unfortunately, many people do not regularly review their credit card activity very closely.  As a result, most of us would not realize our account has been compromised unless the thief racked up large charges very quickly.

Some very tricky criminals realize that one way to stay under the radar is to create companies.  The criminals then make small charges, usually under $10, on the credit cards that they have gained access to.  The majority of the charges go unnoticed, and the criminal can make a lot of money.  If these charges go undetected, the thief could potentially repeat the charge over and over again!  Be sure to check your credit card statements closely and question any charges that you do not recognize!

Health Insurance Fraud

Another increasingly common form of identity theft is health insurance fraud.  With the skyrocketing costs of health care and the large number of uninsured people in the country, this should come as no surprise.  However, this form of identity theft could potentially be life threatening.

When someone else assumes your identity to gain access to your health insurance, the thief is usually just trying to use your insurance to cover his or her medical costs.  However, this can become very dangerous, because information about the thief’s medical condition, including things such as blood types, can be entered into YOUR medical records.  When your medical charts are inaccurate, this could cause medical mishaps and even death.  Obviously, this is a very dangerous form of identity theft. 

What other forms of identity theft have you heard about?  What can be done to prevent these and protect ourselves?

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