ARE YOU A "HIGH NET WORTH" PERSON - SUGGESTIONS FOR YOUR SAFTEY

We were recently asked to provide a list of suggestions and tips to "high net worth individuals" for a speaking engagement. Here is our "tip sheet" for those with significant assets to protect. Most of us know the basics, like shredding and a locking mailbox. These tips and suggestions assume the basics are well understood.
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AVOIDING IDENTITY THEFT
Suggestions for those with assets to protect.


COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT IDENTITY THEFT

Identity Theft is not just about credit. Credit card theft is less than 25% of Identity Theft. Employment fraud, and its associated frauds, such as IRS fraud, medical benefits fraud, drivers license fraud represent the vast majority of identity theft frauds.

Credit monitoring provides little protection against credit fraud. The lag times involved in the credit rating companies systems result in notification by credit grantors of problems long before those problems are reflected in a credit monitoring system.

Identity Thieves target high net worth individuals. While identity theft is statistically most common among the age group of 22 to 24, the greatest monetary damage and disruption of life occurs among those with significant assets.

Some identity thieves specialize in victimizing the very young, the very old, the very sick, and the dead. You need to protect the entire family.

Data breaches are a very real threat to your privacy and security. 40% of data breaches are intentional criminal acts, and not lost laptops or misplaced backup tapes.

TIPS

Avoid using ATM machines when traveling outside the USA/Canada. Never use an ATM machine in mainland China, Eastern Europe, or Southern Europe.

Freeze your credit – stop credit rating companies from selling your credit information to others, including criminals, without your permission.

Eliminate paper statements from banks and financial institutions. Use on-line systems with good software protection to access your financial records frequently. Set aside a specific time, say Sunday afternoon, to review your accounts on a weekly basis. Don’t wait for a monthly bill to uncover trouble.

Eliminate all unused credit vehicles. Cancel “emergency” credit cards. Close lines of credit you do not anticipate using in the near future. Cancel all cash balance dormant accounts. Bank employees are often bribed into providing this information to thieves. These accounts are targeted by criminals and tend to be unmonitored, giving criminals valuable time to escape detection.

Turn off wire transfer facilities with financial institutions. Use these facilities only when needed.

Billing errors are increasingly uncommon. Don’t assume a billing error will be cleared up without your direct action. It may not be a billing error. It could be identity theft.

Always file a police report when you are a victim of identity theft. Without a police report, no crime has been committed. Without a police report you have no rights to dispute claims by others.

If a victim, always create a paper trail. Do not rely of phone calls to permanently resolve problems. It its credit fraud, call the credit issuer immediately. Then follow up with a written statement and a copy of the police report. Create a contemporaneous log of all your activity. Document as if you were going into court.

Be sensitive to the fact that identity theft often occurs within families. These cases require swift but discreet handling. Knowledge experts will be required.

Second homes and vacation homes are major targets for mortgage fraud. Real property you do not closely observe is subject to significant risk.

Information about you has cash value to criminals. Criminals trade "profiles" for cash. If you are a victim once, you will probably be targeted again.