You hear about it on the news all the time, individuals’ identities stolen and thousands of dollars in debt racked up and no trace of the thief because it was done online. While individual’s personal information can easily be stolen online it is just as frequent that information is stolen from mailboxes.
That is right; your mailbox is making you vulnerable to identity theft unless you have a locking mailbox. If you don’t have a locking mailbox then it is time to invest in one and stop mail theft from happening to you.
What happens as a general rule with mail theft is a thief identifies an area where he believes the population would receive regular offers for credit or loans. Then, he makes a plan and goes mailbox to mailbox stealing victims’ mail. Of course, occasionally identity thieves choose to only steal the type of mail that is important to them such as credit card offers or home mortgage loan offers.
However, this requires the thief to read over each piece of mail and increase the risk of getting caught. As a result, frequently the thief goes mailbox to mailbox taking out all the mail and then choosing the pieces that best meet his needs. Any type of mail that contains social security numbers and the like are preferable because it makes applying for loans and credit cards online significantly easier.
While not receiving any mail may seem suspicious to you it is possible you did not receive any mail at all that day and most people just let it go. Then, the thief is using their personal information to open new accounts, get loans, credit and the like.
Then, the thief proceeds to max out the credit cards or loans as quickly as possible because the thief will certainly not be making a monthly payment and as a result wants to use up the credit as fast as possible then move on to another card.
You, as the victim, may have no clue because all of the information for contacting you is likely false and so the credit cards or loans go into default and your credit is severely damaged.
However, this situation can easily be avoided by simply shopping for locking mailboxes and buying locking mailboxes that will offer protection to you and your family, protects your identity, and stop identity theft in its tracks. No longer should you trust that your mail is safe because it most certainly is very vulnerable.
Get identity theft protection and identity theft prevention from the simple act of buying a new locking mailbox. You will be glad you did and so will your identity.
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Original article provided by Securitymailbox.com, who is a provider of locking mailboxes based in Portland Oregon, but shipping all over the United States
