There are some phishing scams that you might encounter, so it would be to your advantage to have knowledge on how to handle them. If you are looking for a job online, be wary of those that convince you to send personal information. There are cyber criminals who are hiding behind legitimate job sites just to enhance their reputation. They even go to the extent of using familiar-looking logos and convincing language that could attract your attention. The truth is that the links that they use are leading you to bogus websites that only appear to be owned by legitimate companies.

There are also sites that, if not asking for personal information, are charging you fees for services that they claim to offer. There have been many victims of this kind of fraud – they paid for services that they were not able to receive at all. This type of online scam is so effective that there is a continuous increase in the number of related complaints. These criminals are difficult to catch because they “close down” their businesses after a while and simply disappear.

For job hunters like you, it would help if you remember these few tips that would keep you safe. Do not provide any personal information that is not related to work. For example, a legitimate prospective employer would not ask for your social security number, date of birth, home address, etc. In fact, it is advised that you should not give out any of this information over the phone, through email, or by fax.

Your resume is your most valuable “capital” as a job hunter. It contains so much sensitive information about yourself that you have to keep private. Do not just give away your resume without having a valid reason. If you want to post it online, choose a job site that has a clear privacy policy. Go for one that verifies recruiters before allowing them to gain access to your records.

If you need to verify a prospective employer or recruiter, look for the company’s contact number and call it. If it is convenient enough, you can visit the company in person during regular business hours. After doing so, you can agree to a background check if they request it.

Is it still unusual to hear a case of identity theft committed by a “desperate” woman just to get even with her ex-boyfriend? There is another impersonation case that has almost succeeded in ruining a person’s image online. A woman created a fake Facebook page using her ex-boyfriend’s name, photo and some personal information. To accomplish her goal, she posted inflammatory comments, and a judge ruled that she can be prosecuted for identity theft. Although not new, this is yet another reason to further think about the case’s wider implications for cyber speech.

The woman stole the identity of her ex-boyfriend, who was a police narcotics detective. The self-destructive posts appeared to be made by him and everything seemed real. One of the comments made was about him being “high all the time”. The rest of the comments were about his admittance of his illicit activities such as frequenting prostitutes and escort services, and that he had herpes.

Such cases of identity theft are always done to get a benefit for one’s own self or to injure or take advantage of another. Issues of online impersonation and cyber bullying first came out of a famous case in 2006. A 13-year-old girl committed suicide because she was targeted online by a fictitious 13-year old boy. Investigations in the case turned out that the “boy” was in reality the mother of another teenage girl.

As the Christmas season approaches, so does the time for holiday shopping. This is the time of year that retailers find the most profitable. Needless to say, this also becomes the most opportune time for identity thieves to make a maximum profit. Here are some tips to help you stay away from these thieves so that they do not enjoy the holidays at your expense.

When paying at the counter, beware of skimming. This happens when the store clerk takes your card and swipes it through a device. This process copies the information from the card’s magnetic strip, and the thief will have your information. Obviously, purchases can then be made using your card. You might not have noticed this because you thought it was just the credit card reader.

Compared with debit cards, credit cards have more protection associated with them. When using a credit card, it is safer to use the same card for all of your holiday transactions. This makes it easier for you to track your purchases and to find out if there are any suspicious activities. The best thing to do, of course, is to use cash because cash does not have any of your identifying information.

This was a great video on Identity theft.  It seems that a hackers stole 130,000,000 credit card numbers.  That’s right 130 million.  What’s worse is that some of these credit cards were not credit cards, but debit cards.  People had money taken right out of their accounts.

Debit cards are dangerous.  You do not get the same protections on a debit card that you get with a credit card.  So why would anyone want to have a card that can take money right our of their bank accounts?  Seriously, what benefit is there that outweighs the risks?

Watch the You Tube video and decide for yourself.

So for those of you who thought this could not happen to you, 130,000,000 credit cards are an awful lot of cards.  Could it be that one of them was yours.  After watching this video, I checked my cards again and I would urge you to do the same.

One thing to take away from this is that protecting your privacy, and your identity, is up to you. You need to be vigilant. Think about the issues and put safeguards in place so that you are not the subject of a You Tube video on identity theft..