In the 21^st century Americans are increasingly threatened by identity theft, perhaps more now than ever before. According to a recent report from the General Accounting Office as many as 750,000 Americans fall victim to some form of identity theft every year.

Even though this is the age of the Internet much of the identity theft perpetrated each year is done offline. It may be impossible to put a stop to all identity theft altogether but you can take steps to protect yourself, especially if you know what to look out for. Unfortunately about 80% of identity theft victims never realize a crime has been committed against them until it is too late.

One offline crime that is being seen increasingly in bars and restaurants uses what is known as a “skimmer”. A skimmer is a small device that can read credit card information. Crooks find waiters, waitresses and bartenders to come in on an identity theft scheme with them and as the worker runs a guest’s credit card through the house machine to take care of the bill they also pass it through the skimmer. In a busy restaurant a clever server may be able to steal as many as 100 credit cards a night.

A physical Social Security card is a big score for identity thieves as well. A stolen wallet that contains a Social Security card can allow a crook to step up banks accounts and potentially gain access to credit cards that they can max out quickly before suspicion is aroused.

There are of course all kinds of identity theft scams on the Internet.  A newer e mail scam involves identity thieves posing as mortgage bankers, dangling super low interest deals if the consumer responds quickly with their personal details. Another sees crooks posing as representatives of an Internet service, asking people to provide personal details so that there all important IP address is not blocked for lack of verification.

These are just a few examples of the many ways one can fall victim to identity theft. Protecting all your personal and financial information is a must to avoid having thieves steal your life.  Never carry your social security card in your wallet and never give out the number online or on the telephone unless you are 100% sure of whom you are dealing with.

Another way to check for identity theft is to keep a close watch on your credit report. Order a copy of your personal credit report from all three major credit bureaus at least once a year and check it carefully. You can also subscribe to credit monitoring services who will alert you whenever something changes on your report.