Cybersecurity Checkup© for March
An often overlooked item, in our digital life, is good old-fashioned mail. There is a lot of information that you can glean from a person’s mail and if not properly managed, mail can be a great avenue to identity theft.
While mail can be challenging, a few steps, which can be time consuming, in the beginning, can definitely be a time saver in the end, and also provide additional identity security.
When I return, from having been away from home, I separate my mail into five piles. The first pile is all the advertisements that do not contain any personal identifying information; and can most easily be discarded. I am not a big coupon person and have found that coupons clutter my life, thus I quickly throw that pile away, making me feel accomplished quickly.
The second pile is letters that contain my name and address. Usually, this mail can also be easily handled. It is mostly advertisement, such as offers for cable or car insurance. When you open this type of mail, it normally does not have any additional personal identifying information and should be shredded. You can call the sender, of such mail, which is often a second business, responsible for mass mailings, and request that your name be removed from the mailing list, this can be tedious, and not always render the results you want, but over time you may see a reduction in this “junk” mail.
The third pile, of mail, is letters that do contain personal information, like a letter from your doctor, discussing test results. Recently, Jill received mail, from a medical professional, that included her social security number, as well as, insurance information. Any medical business that sends your social security number, including a dentist, or ophthalmologist, should not be seen again. That is completely irresponsible. Presently, medical information is selling for ten times the amount of just a credit card number and is responsible for billions of dollars in fraud cases, against insurance companies. Medical professionals do not need your social security number, as long as you have your insurance card with picture identification. This mail should be shredded! Remember, if you do not have a shredder, an item which can be purchased, for around twenty-five dollars, there are many communities which sponsor shred-a-thons, make a few calls and find out if you can take your mail to be shredded, if you do not have a shredder.
The fourth pile, of mail, is catalogues. If you do any kind of online ordering, then many catalogues, are soon to follow, and not only from whom you placed the original order. Catalogues create an ease of use for the customer, so if you want to call in your order, you are quickly able to provide the customer service representative with your customer number, which is on the outside, of the catalogue. But there is also an ease of use for the customer if they want to do mail order, in that case, you will have information about you on the inside, such as your name, address, customer number, and perhaps a financial offer with said company. I have also had a company list all the prior gifts that we order for the holidays. It is too much information for too many people to see. Cancel the catalogues! It is a painful process, because first you have to call and ask them to not send out any more catalogues and unfortunately, it does not always seem to be handled the first time you call.
The fifth pile, of mail, and I believe to be the most critical area for identity theft, are financial offers from banks. When I open a letter and find, pre-approved financial offers, which state that all I need to do is call, well I do call. But I inform them not to send anymore offers. Do you know how easy it is for someone to call, and simply say that you have moved, to send the card to a new address?
There is too much information, being sent through an insecure channel, with the potential of your identity being stolen. Sadly, we live in a society which demands diligence, even when dealing the mail. The steps provided above can help keep you safely connected, even through our United States Postal Service, and don’t forget to shred!
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