Internet Identity Theft

To protect yourself against internet identity theft when you go shopping online, only use your credit card or bank details with a merchant you know you can trust. If you are uncertain, don't buy.

Even if you take precautions you can get caught out by a practice called 'phishing' whereby you receive an email purporting to be from a bank, PayPal or a credit card company. I say 'a bank' as opposed to 'your bank' as this is an initial clue that the email is not from whom it claims to be. The emails, sent out by the thousands, hope to catch the unwary who do actually have an account with the supposed sender.

They essentially advise you that routine maintenance is underway and that all customers are required to click on a link that will take them to the, say, bank website, where they will be required to enter their login information - full name, address, date of birth, passwords, account numbers and so on.

What actually happens is that the victim is connected to a website that looks genuine, but which has been especially set up for the purpose of obtaining and recording personal information that can be used for fraudulent purposes.

When these emails first started they were easy to spot. Grammar and spelling were poor, and the graphics used to imitate the financial companies' logo were second rate.

But they have got a lot more sophisticated and can look authentic. Except for one thing. Reputable banks and other financial institutions do not request login information - name , address, account numbers, passwords and so on, either by email, telephone or letter.

So, if you ever receive an email like this, ignore it and delete it. If you are still uncertain and think that it might just be from your bank, there is one method to check it out. Don't use the link embedded in the email. Close the email, open your web browser - Internet Explorer or Firefox, for example - and type in the web address or use the one saved in your favourites or bookmark folder. When you arrive at the home page you will see that there is no message regarding updating customer details, or security procedures or whatever.

Another few important points about banking online - use different passwords for your various accounts. All too often people use the same password, which means that if one of your accounts is compromised the rest might easily be breached as well.

It is a good idea as well to use different entries for 'mother's maiden name' when you initially set up account details. This question is just a security double-check for when you login. Think about it. How easy would it be for anyone to ascertain your mother's real maiden name. Not too difficult at all. Anyone knowing that, who also knows your full name, address and postal code gets pretty close to having the information needed to access some accounts online.

So, vary your passwords and use different mother's maiden names when you set up new accounts.

Only buy from sites that use secure encryption technology to process your order and payment, that way you know your transaction will be safely concluded. And use credit cards in preference to debit cards when you purchase online, as you are better protected in a case of fraud.