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College Students and Identity TheftProtect yourself from having your identity stolen in collegeThe Department Of Education reports that college students are very vulnerable to having their identity stolen. College students are particularly at risk because of how their identity is handled and how careless some students can be. For example, up to fifty percent of college students receive credit card applications on a regular basis. The problem is, students just toss most of these in the trash. This is dangerous because anyone can get it, fill it out, and get the credit card sent to them. If you receive credit card offers in the mail, completely destry it. Another problem for college students is having their college ID numbers be their social security number. If so, your social security number is not a secret. If your college uses your social security number as your ID number, refuse to accept this. Also, many professors post grades by social security numbers, especially if these are your student ID numbers. Bad idea. Get your professors to never post grades by social security number. Other Ways for College Students to Protect Themselves From Identity TheftNot checking their charges on their credit card and bank statements. Many little charges may go unnoticed. These are a good way that fraud goes unreported. If you see a charge you do not recognize, report it to your bank or credit card company fast. There are services out there for monitoring changes to your name online and off, such as Reputation.com with services that monitor activity that may be going on about you and in the worst cases, that can reverse reputation damage done. Social websites like myspace, facebook, twitter, etc. are fun and inviting. But too many people reveal their real names, birthdays, telephone numbers, and addresses. These are all identity theft criminals need. Do not give out any such personal information. It may sound like you are giving this to friends, but you are not. Do not fill out credit card applications from people standing around the campus passing them out. When you hand it back, that person has access to your personal information. If you must fill one out, see if they have an online offer, or if you can mail the application in. Protect your laptop computer at all times. Many college students have all their personal information stored on their laptops. If it's stolen, their goes your identity. Even password protecting your computer will not help. This is easily broken. Keep your laptop safe from other people at all times. The same goes for a deskptop or lab computer. Do not do any personal type of work on these computers. Thet are not secure and are open to anyone. Do not save anything that has your personal information on them. This also applys to your cell phone. If you text or do business on the web via cell phone, protect it at all times. If you lose it, you could lose your identity as well. Since cell phones are easily left or lost, avoid storing personal information on them. Do not reply to any text message offers or email phishing texts. Do not reply to any financial offer in a text or email. Do not text or email back any personal information. Remember, college students are very vulnerable to identity theft. Be very careful with your personal information and graduate college with your identity and finances safe!
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