Or at least how fragile your identity is. If someone steals it, you have to clean up the mess. You're a busy college student on a tight budget - so how would you like to spend months, even years of your time and money clearing up your financial and personal records? Identity theft strikes the old and young alike, and is one of the fastest growing crimes in the United States.

Facts about identity theft:
  • Identity theft occurs when someone uses your name, social security number, credit card number or other identifying information without your permission, usually to open new accounts, request credit or charge merchandise.
  • Victims of identity theft may be refused loans, housing or cars, or even be arrested for crimes they didn't commit.
  • Even if you've never opened a credit account, you could still be an unsuspecting victim if someone gets a hold of your personal information and opens a new account in your name. This could ruin your credit record before you even establish one.
What to do if you're a victim:
  • First, place a fraud alert on your credit reports by contacting the fraud department of one of the three major credit bureaus - you can find out what these are at www.consumer.gov/idtheft. Review your credit report for accuracy and close any accounts that have been tampered with or opened fraudulently.
  • Next, file a report with the police in the community where the identity theft took place - you may need a copy of your report to validate your claims to creditors. Finally, you should file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission at 1-877-IDTHEFT (438-4338).
Tips for preventing identity theft:
  • About once a year, order a copy of your credit report from each of the three major credit bureaus and check for suspicious activity.
  • If your student ID number is your social security number, you might consider changing it at the Office of the Registrar in Mrak Hall, although UC Davis stopped using SSNs as student ID numbers in fall 2002.
  • If you keep personal identification information on computers or make online purchases, make sure the info is encrypted and the websites you're dealing with are secure.
  • Keep and update antivirus software on your computer so hackers can't get to it - a free download of Norton AntiVirus is available to students through the software site on my.ucdavis.edu.
  • Use a paper shredder for receipts, bank statements and all other documents that reveal confidential information.
  • If you need to send personal identity information via e-mail, use a secure server - like my.ucdavis.edu, aol.com or hotmail.com - instead of e-mail programs like Outlook or Eudora, which are susceptible to interception.