Are you protecting yourself?

Ask yourself these questions. Are you:

• Using an ATM with your debit card?
• Using free Wi-Fi?
• Paying bills online?
• Having your social security card in your wallet?
• Checking your online bank statement?
• Using online credit card statements to do expense reports?
• Shopping – online or in stores?
• Using Wi-Fi in-flight?
• Storing sensitive data on your laptop?
• Riding elevators or subways?
• Failing to stop your mail when out of town?
• Downloading movies to your iPad?

If you answered yes to any of them, you are a candidate for identify theft.

Oh, you answered yes to ALL of them? Your risk just skyrocketed. (Don’t feel alone . . . I answered Yes to all but the last – and only because I do not yet have an iPad.)

Maybe you’ve wondered about your exposure to identity theft. You have taken what you think is a precaution or two:

You look around to ensure no one is watching when standing at the ATM.

You make sure there is a little “s” behind http when doing online shopping.

You run a virus-check on your laptop on a scheduled basis.

You password-protect sensitive documents, including the one that holds your account numbers.

Phew … you should be safe.

Not so fast!

Sorry to be the deliverer of bad news but all of us are vulnerable every day – and it doesn’t matter if we’re on the road or sitting on our back porch! Whether you travel a little or a lot, all you have to do is be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

And our risks increase as we move more and more to an online world and have an ever-growing wallet of mileage-accruing credit and debit cards.

Will we ever be completely safe against identify theft? Unfortunately no. But can we be smart about it? Yes!

There are people who make it their business to thwart thieves who steal your personal identification. To get specific answers for identify protection, I spoke with the experts at LifeLock® – the people who provide proactive identity theft protection. Mike Prusinski, Senior VP of Corporate Communications at Lifelock, gave me lots of great advice to share with you on how to become very smart about preventing identify theft.

Here is Mike’s advice on warding off identity thieves from attacking you:

• Realize that identify theft is not just about credit cards – that’s only 15-16% of identity theft crime. Now it’s about someone stealing your social security number to get a job or file for benefits.
• Never carry your social security card in your wallet or purse. Leave this in your home safe or safety deposit box.
• Don’t use debit cards. They provide thieves with a direct pipeline to your bank accounts. It is also more difficult and time consuming to resolve fraudulent purchases made with debit cards. Instead, use a credit card where your liability is reduced.
• When using an ATM machine, as you enter your pin number use your other hand to cover up the entry.
• If asked for your social security number on paper or online applications – leave it blank! If they want this information, ask these questions:
  • Why do you need it?
  • How are you storing this data? Laptop, desktop, paper file?
  • If something happens and I get a letter saying you lost my data, how are you going to protect me?
• Get an annual credit report and review it carefully. You are entitled to one free report annually from each of the top agencies: TransUnion, Experian and Equifax. Ensure all of the account numbers are valid and that the credit cards are in your possession.
• Remove yourself from direct marketing lists. See Is Danger Lurking in Your Mailbox and You Don’t Even Know It? for how to do this.
• When using Wi-Fi, ensure you are selecting the right connection from your computer’s list of available Wi-Fi connections. You don’t want to be connecting to someone who is “sniffing out” your information.
• Avoid banking or shopping online when using free Wi-Fi.
• Get an air card (also known as a laptop card, wireless internet card, usb modem) from AT&T, Verizon or other mobile service provider. While there is a monthly service fee, you have more secure internet-on-the-go access even when no Wi-Fi is available.
• Chips in credit cards and passports were designed to be safer, but criminals have developed RFID readers. They can walk by you reading the credit card or passport information (since 2006, passports have RFID chips in them) right out of your wallet or purse. This is why everyone who answered Yes to the “Ride elevators or subways?” question is vulnerable. They even build antennas and drive by your home or office picking up the RFID signal.

You can place fraud alerts on your credit card accounts and freeze your credit file to prevent thieves from establishing credit in your name. Also, keep an inventory of credit cards and other important numbers in a safe place at home or safety deposit box. In addition, enlist the help of experts such as Lifelock or similar companies to help protect against identity theft.

Get smart. Be vigilant. Knowledge is power. Be safe.

To receive a free copy of our ebook, 70 Secrets to Safe Travel — Because Your Life Can Change in a Heartbeat, and for more travel savvy info to help you travel smarter, safer and with more enjoyment, visit SmartWomenTravelers.com and PearlsofTravelWisdom.com.

Keep Your Laptop With You!

Do not leave the laptop visible when you leave your car – not even for a minute. Instead, take your laptop with you. Yes, it can be an extra burden to carry it into a restaurant or store, but this burden is easier to bear than replacing a stolen laptop.

If you do leave your laptop in the trunk of the car, avoid putting it in the trunk just prior to leaving your car—anyone watching knows it’s in there!

I’ve known several people who have had their laptops stolen from their cars even though they weren’t outright visible from within their laptop bags. It doesn’t matter if I only leave my car for a few minutes to run into a restaurant to pick up a meal … my laptop goes with me.

Avoid Projectile Laptops

While driving, keep your laptop in your laptop tote on the back seat of the car, preferably on the floor. This eliminates a laptop from being projected towards the dashboard (or towards you!) in the event of a sudden stop had it been sitting on the front passenger seat.

No Prolonged Exposure to Intense Heat and Cold

When you park your car outside in the summer, the temperature inside your car can reach 150 degrees Fahrenheit or more. Leaving a battery-powered device in your extremely hot car for more than about 2 hours can not only permanently shorten the battery’s life but also damage other parts, including the LCD screen, the plastic case, and the glue holding it together.

Instead of yelling out my room number so the entire restaurant could hear, I waited until I walked up to the host. In a quiet voice, I said that I preferred my room number not be broadcast for safety reasons.  She apologized and said that she had never considered this.

While it has become more common practice by front desk clerks to no longer announce our room numbers upon check-in, the other departments within a hotel may not be aware of this sensitivity.

If you ever feel that your safety has been compromised by a public announcement of your room number, ask for a new room. And if it’s the hotel staff who made the public announcement, ask the manager to have someone help you move your items into your new room (and let the manager be aware of this safety breach).

Check out the Balanzza Digital Luggage Scale. It weighs 10 oz. and can weigh up to 100 pound bags. Other frequent fliers have found this digital luggage scale to be very accurate. Allow for a 2 lb margin of error as the airline scale may differ.

You can also weigh your luggage on your home scale before you depart on your trip. Trouble is, your bag may be under the weight limit upon departure but they you buy lots of stuff during your travels.  A 40 lb bag can quickly become an over-50 lb bag! In this case, the digital luggage scale is your answer!