Members of Generation Y tend are prone to identity theft. Anyone age 18 to 24 attracts identity thieves the most, according to Javelin Research and Strategy. This age group likely has untainted credit records which are surefire tools for thieves to take out loans.

Since 2005, around 100 American universities and colleges have reported security compromises, according to Privacy Rights Clearinghouse. Indeed, colleges and universities offer a treasure trove for thieves, who could use something as trivial as report cards to strike gold.

Identity thieves are often a step ahead of everyone, despite the technological know-how of the youth. So it pays to regularly upgrade the computer’s security and anti-virus capabilities. Many computers have locking features that ask for passwords from uninvited users.

Similarly, students shouldn’t be fooled by phishing, pre-texting and similar deceptions by tech-savvy thieves. Granted, identity scams have grown more sophisticated than before. Affinion Security Center has noted that they often pose as websites or emails from legitimate organizations, asking for sensitive data. The trick is to look for URLs beginning with https://. These URLs indicate a secured connection.

For all their technological advances however, identity cons know better than to ignore a classic: the rummaging-for-papers-in-trash-cans technique. Therefore, papers containing names, addresses, and social security numbers should be disposed of properly ASAP. If one can’t rip papers apart long enough by hand for them to be indecipherable, a good paper shredder is in order. Student affairs offices usually have one.

However, credit card-toting college students need to religiously check their statements first before destroying them. Credit monitoring services can help warn account holders of identity theft in progress.

For anything that requires a password, students should create a strong one that isn’t easily guessed. A good password can be a combination of characters and digits. Either way, no student should divulge his/her passwords and PIN numbers to others.

Affinion Security Center has compiled these tips from years of experience tackling cases of identity theft in colleges. An international leader in identity theft protection services, Affinion Security Center is a member of the Staples Security Council and the Identity Theft Prevention and Identity Management Standards Panel steering committee.

Post Author: guest

This entry was posted on Friday, January 29th, 2010 at 3:36 pm and is filed under Corporate News, Industry News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.