Is your trash can a treasure chest for identity thieves?

Flyers come in the mail along with financial institutions that want you to sign up for their credit card, but what should you do with all of this information? Most people just throw it away along with all of their other junk mail, but this can open the door for people looking to steal your identity.

What you should remember when trying to thwart identity thieves is to make it as hard as possible for them to steal your identity. If any mail comes in that has personal information on it then you should shred it. This includes any flyers or credit card offers that list your name and address. The reason you do this is because you want to give the possible thieves as little information as possible.

When you go through you files to clean them out for the next year then you will want to shred all of your statements. It is also a good idea to invest in a cross shredder because it will make it more difficult for possible thieves. They won’t want to take the time to piece your information back together when your neighbor just throws his away.

You will also want to put the trash out just before the collector comes so that you give the possible thieves as little time as possible to go through your trash. If you are one that sets it out overnight so that you can sleep in tomorrow morning then you are making it easier to have your identity stolen.

These are just a few tips to help you stop from having your identity stolen. If you would like more information on stopping identity theft and what you can do go to the FTC. It just might save your identity.