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It's National Protect Your Identity Week, so each day we'll post an educational article with tips on how to better understand identity theft and how to reduce your risk of it occurring.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) states "identity theft starts with the misuse of your personally identifying information, such as your name and SSN, credit card numbers and other financial information." Identity thieves use a variety of methods to collect personal information, so being aware of how thieves steal identities is the first step in reducing the risk.

Identities thieves can use the following methods to obtain personal information:

• Dumpster Diving: Rummaging through trash looking for bills and other papers that contain personal information 
• Skimming: Stealing credit/debit card numbers by using a special storage device when processing your card
• Phishing: Pretending to be financial institutions or companies on the phone to get you to reveal your personal information
• Changing Your Address: Divert your billing statements to another location by completing a change of address form
• Stealing: Stealing your wallet/purse, mail (statements, pre-approved credit offers, new checks or tax information) and personal records, includes bribing employees that have access to such information, to get your personal information
• Pretexting: Using false pretenses to obtain personal information from financial institutions, telephone companies and other sources

New technology has also introduced new opportunities for identity thieves to collect personal information and can include:

• Phishing: Pretending to be a financial institution or company by using emails and websites to look like those belonging to that business
• Pharming: Secretly installing a malicious program on a computer to hijack a web browser and redirect users to fraudulent sites to capture information entered
• SMiShing: Phishing via mobile text messages that alerts the user of a need for immediate action that includes a link to a phony site that deceives the user to disclose personal information

Identity theft should be taken seriously because it could potentially cost hundreds of dollars and a significant amount of time to repair the damage made to your name and credit report. Here are just a few examples of ways that identity thieves may use your personal information once it is collected:

Credit Card Fraud
The thief may open a credit card in your name that will appear as a delinquent account on your credit report when the bills aren't paid. If the thief changes the billing address on your credit card, you'll no longer receive the bills and it may be some time before you realize what's happened.

Bank/Finance Fraud
An identity thief may create counterfeit checks using your name and account number, open a bank account in your name and write bad checks, clone your ATM/debit card and make electronic withdrawals draining your accounts or take a loan out in your name.

Phone/Utility Fraud
The thief may open a new phone/wireless account in your name, or run up charges in your existing account. They may also use your name to obtain utility services, such as electricity, heating or cable.

Government Documents Fraud
A thief may get a driver's license or official ID card with their picture but your name, use your name and SSN to get government benefits or file a fraudulent tax return with your information.

Other Fraud
Other identity theft fraud may include getting a job using your SSN, renting a house or getting medical services using your name or giving police your personal information when getting arrested potentially producing a warrant to be issued in your name.

At Alliant, we're committed to protecting your financial privacy. We use advanced security to safeguard our members' personal information by restricting access and training employees in the importance of confidentiality and member privacy by maintaining physical, electronic and procedural safeguards that comply with federal regulations and leading industry practices.

Learn more about National Protect Your Identity Week.

You may also be interested in:

• Reduce The Risk Of Identity Theft
• Prevent Identity Theft
• Detecting & Recovering From Identity Theft

Alliant Credit Union will never solicit you for personal information, such as account number, credit/debit card numbers, passwords or PINs. Contact us immediately if you think unauthorized access or fraud has occurred in connection with your Alliant Credit Union accounts at 800-328-1935 (24/7). To learn more about Alliant's security and to stay updated on fraud alerts, visit Security.

Sources: FTC.gov, CUNA