Robert Siciliano is a NextAdvisor.com Expert Guest Blogger
This lots of overconfidence in the Facebook world. People have completely abandoned their cynicism feeling when you are connected. Apparently, they see no reason to be suspicious. In general, your "friends" are people who you "know, like and trust." In this world, your guard is as low as it will ever be. You can be in the safety of your own home or office, hooked with people from all over the world, in large cities and small towns, and never feel that you have to watch your back.
PC world reports that a third of social networks have at least three elements information published on their pages that could lead to identity theft. the names, addresses, dates of birth, maiden names, children of mothers names, names of pets and phone numbers are among the different types of data that could help a criminal piece together your identity. social networkers are simply making it too easy for thieves.
Nearly 80% of respondents are concerned about privacy issues on social networks, but nearly 60% are not aware of what their privacy settings and who can view their data. One third of social network admitted they use the same password for all their social networking accounts.
Most social networks have privacy settings that many users never venture to manage. It is imperative to spend a few minutes and lock your profiles so they can not be seen by everyone in the world.
It is not unusual for a potential identity thief to "friend" of a potential victim. The robber is as someone can know the target, or someone who is experienced in the social circle of the target. Once the thief has been accepted as a friend, he or she is in the inner circle of the target and earn a lot of insight into the daily life of the target.
Often people try to "friend" me, and I can see that they are "friends" with people I know. But I do not know. And mutual friends often tell me they do not know the person, but were "friends" with someone they knew and they accepted based on that! It's crazy! The next thing you know, they are lagging behind by your "friends" and friends with the people in your network who accept based on their trust in you! Dizzy yet? The point is, stop the madness! Do not let these trolls in your life. Mom told you not to talk to strangers. I told you not to "friend" strangers because they might be crooks.
Scammers look. They know that once they are on Facebook, your guard goes down.
Regardless of all this madness, protect your identity. Get a credit freeze. Go to ConsumersUnion.org and follow the steps for your particular state. This is an absolutely necessary tool to secure your credit. In most cases, it prevents new accounts from being opened in your name. This makes your Social Security number useless to a potential identity thief. And invest in identity theft protection. All forms of protection against identity theft can be prevented, but identity theft protection services can dramatically reduce your risk.
Robert Siciliano is CEO of IDTheftSecurity.com, an expert on identity theft, professional speaker, security analyst, published author and television news correspondent. Siciliano works with Fortune 1000 and start-up companies as a consultant on product launches, branding, messaging, representation, SEO and media. the thoughts and advice of Siciliano on all these issues often appear in both television and print media news, including CNN, MSNBC, CNBC, FOX, Forbes and USA Today. He has 25 years of safety training as a member of the American Society for Industrial Security. He is the author of two books, including The Safety Minute: Living on high alert; How to take control of your personal safety and to prevent fraud . He also established a partnership with Uni-Ball to help raise awareness of the growing threat of identity theft and provide tips on how you can protect yourself.