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One afternoon several weeks right after the holiday season, my wife and kids were surprised with a knock at the door. It seems like my spouse had left her wallet in a food market shopping cart at the grocery store and this kind stranger had used my wife’s address to return it. We were so grateful to the stranger that we offered her the cash in the wallet however the stranger nicely declined. My spouse didn’t even realize her wallet was lost! My better half of course blames it on our new child who had been distracting her. We thanked the kind stranger and as she left, my wife and I both felt encouraged by the fact that there still seemed to be good individuals still walking the earth.

After the incident, my wife noticed she had not only her social security card in the wallet but our kids as well. While doing a bit of reorganizing, she had forgotten to remove them. While we were mildly alarmed about it and considered acquiring some form of identity theft protection, we chose not to. Why would the stranger give back my wife’s wallet if she intended to commit identity theft However the more we considered how much information this complete stranger possessed, the more anxious we became.

Once we finally decided to join into an identity theft plan, my wife’s as well as our kid’s credit file indicated we were right to be worried. There were address change requests and new accounts opened. She had even tried to access our checking account. We couldn’t figure out at why she would return the wallet to us but thank goodness we detected the identity fraud in it’s early stages. The good thing is nowadays, consumers have many options to counteract identity fraud. The identity fraud industry has exploded with companies like TrustedID, Lifelock, and Identity Guard which provide inventive options to not only defending your credit rating but support you with recovering from it also.

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Have you ever thought about what could happen to you if your identity got into the wrong hands? Having a loan application passed up because of questionable bad credit? Going to prison for criminal activity you didn’t commit? Having your life savings stolen? These may be scary sounding scenarios, but what are the chances that you could become a victim??

Unfortunately, in this increasingly digital world our data is already out there. You don’t have to lose your wallet like my wife did to have your life turned upside down (though it can certainly make matters worse). Here are just a few more examples:

• A graduate student was mugged in her apartment parking lot and the mugger took her book bag, which contained her driver’s license, credit cards, a small amount of cash, and Social Security card. About 90 days later, she discovered that someone had opened credit card accounts at JCPenny’s, Marshalls’s, and Old Navy.
• A single mother was apprehended in front of her children for supposedly having conceived and given up a cocaine-addicted newborn. To fight the charges of neglect and endangerment, she had to show that another individual had given her information during birth.
• An organized crime syndicate used the identity of a large company’s vice president to conduct illicit drug transactions. One morning, the innocent victim was awakened by federal agents in his bedroom, who tried to arrest him at gunpoint. After the ordeal, he eventually proved that he was not a drug dealer.
• A individual thought he’d discovered his soul mate in his new bride, until he found out she’d used his Social Security number to open several large loans. After being divorced for many years, he’s still trying to keep the debt collectors at bay.

You may have already noticed, your own vigilance might not be good enough. Even though you secure your personal info like a little baby, you have very little control over concerns like lackadaisical credit insurance policies, the reckless security procedures of certain companies , and ineffective privacy laws. You may not lose things like my wife but things can be stolen from you. You could be the victim of theft or even a pickpoket. Although not anything can promise you won’t become an identity fraud victim, it is possible to definately elevate your chances by taking a few simple precautions. You can get more information about preventing identity theft and how identity theft protection services compare against each other here.

One afternoon a few weeks after Christmas, our family was surprised by a knock at the door. Apparently my wife had left her wallet in a market shopping basket at the market and this stranger had used my wife’s address to return it. All of us were so grateful towards the stranger that we offered her the money in the wallet although the stranger politely declined. My spouse had not even became aware her wallet had been misplaced! My wife naturally blames it on our new newborn who was distracting her. We thanked her and as she left, my spouse and I both felt inspired by the fact that there still appeared to be good people still walking the earth.

Shortly after the incident, my wife noticed she had not only her social security card in the wallet but our kids also. While doing some reorganizing, she had forgotten to remove them. Despite the fact that we were concerned with this total stranger having so much of my wife’s information and toyed with obtaining some kind of identity theft protection. But the more we thought about just how much information this complete stranger possessed, the more troubled we became.

Once we finally made up our minds to enroll into a fraud protection program, my wife’s and our children’s credit profile indicated we were correct to be concerned. There were address change requests and new accounts opened. She had even tried to access our checking account. We were dumbfounded at why she would return the wallet to us but one good thing is we uncovered the identity theft in it’s early stages. Unfortunately my wife and children were forced to change most of their information, including their social security numbers.

Identity frqaud is not something we ordinarily contemplate much about everyday unless it hits close to home or we see on the news. We don’t usually spend our days thinking about what we might have to go through if we were to be victimized. Having a job application declined because of supposed bad credit? Being rushed to the emergency room and given the wrong type of blood because another individual piggybacked on your health insurance? Going to prison for someone else’s crimes? Having your checking account drained of all your money? These may be scary sounding scenarios, but how likely is this to happen to you? Unfortunately, identity theft is the fastest growing crime in America with over 10 million projected victims in 2010. These are some recent examples:

• A college student was robbed near her dormitory parking lot and the thief took her bag. About 90 days later, she discovered that someone had opened charge card accounts at Macy’s, Target, and Old Navy.
• Police apprehended a single mother for supposedly having conceived and given up a cocaine-addicted infant. To clear her name, she had to prove that somebody else had given the hospital her information during birth.
• An organized crime ring used the identity of a fortune 500 company’s president for narcotics trafficking. One morning, the innocent victim was awakened by drug enforment officers in his home, who tried to arrest him at gunpoint. After the ordeal, he eventually proved that he was the innocent victim of identity theft.
• A law enforcement official who’d put hundreds of identity thieves in jail found out she’d been victimized when thousands of dollars disappeared from her checking account. Her data had been stolen from a medical facility database.

As you may have already discovered, consumer vigilance isn’t always adequate. Even if you guard your private information like it’s a national treasure, you can’t do much about challenges like indifferent credit insurance policies, the sloppy security practices of certain companies , and ineffective privacy laws. You may not lose things like my wife but things can be stolen from you. You could be the victim of theft or even a pickpoket. While not anything can insure you won’t be victimized, it is easy to certainly increase your chances of long-term success by prevention and early detection. You can get more information about preventing identity theft here.