ProtectMyID was founded with the purpose of protecting its members’ identities and we are more committed than ever to protecting our members from identity theft. Here’s how we help keep your identity safe.

By John Sileo, Identity Theft Author and Speaker Online shopping during the holidays is a convenient, green, inexpensive way to share the joy of the season. In 2010, Cyber Monday was the heaviest online spending day in history and the first to surpass the billion-dollar threshold ($1.028 billion). But as you gear up for the holidays (yes, it’s here already), don’t forget to take simple precautions to keep your credit card, banking and identity information safe.

By Gabby Beltran, Identity Theft Resource Center One of the common recommendations for individuals when it comes to protecting their identity is to safeguard their information and watch what they post over the internet. With an increase in Smartphone and mobile device usage, accessibility to social networking sites has literally translated to having something within one’s easy reach – the tap of our fingertips. Social networking sites have revolutionized how we communicate and what we do on the internet. As a result, the protection of the information stored in these devices or shared through these forms of internet communication has become a growing concern.

By Chuck Whitlock, Identity Theft Author and Investigative Reporter An old adage warns, “Trust no one.” Sadly, when it comes to protecting your identity, these words should become your mantra. While faceless scammers on the Internet or other strangers are often the main suspects in identity thefts, the biggest threat to your identity may be posed by someone who is close to you, even someone you love.

By Gabby Beltran, Identity Theft Resource Center When it comes to protecting your identity, often times it translates to being proactive. Taking the initiative to look after your personal identifying information is undeniably the best thing you can do. There are areas that are out of your control, but for those areas where you are primarily responsible – keep the following in mind.

To help consumers “DEFEND” themselves against cyberthieves, Experian’s ProtectMyID and Identity Theft Expert Chuck Whitlock offer the following tips:

Identity theft — it is a crime that can be devastating and take countless hours to resolve. According to the Federal Trade Commission, as many as 9 million Americans have their identity stolen each year. Joining “The Balancing Act” on its “myMoney” series is Experian to introduce its leading identity theft detection, protection and resolution product, ProtectMyID™.

Last week, I was speaking with a good friend and member of ProtectMyID. She was mugged three years ago and became a victim of identity theft shortly thereafter. Her data has been sold multiple times and many people across the country have tried to open accounts in her name. Some have been successful and some have been stopped before the damage was done. Believe it or not, she is still affected by identity theft today. In fact, she was recently telling me that despite the fraud alerts on her credit files, ProtectMyID recently alerted her to another account that was opened in her name and submitted to collections. The timing of this was disastrous for her as she was in the middle of refinancing.

Many college graduates expect to leave school with thousands of dollars in student loans. But, they don’t expect to leave with thousands of dollars in fraudulent bills. Identity theft can cause significant damage to both students’ credit and financial stability before they even have a chance to build a solid foundation for themselves. Instead of waiting until the damage is done, it’s important for students to protect their identities throughout college.

Many of the largest banks are frequently targeted by identity thieves and in this day and age no one is immune to the possibility of becoming a victim. I recently read where an identity thief pretended to be his recent victim and got approved for a new debit card which he then activated over the phone. Within a few days, the thief wiped out the victim’s checking account stealing $8,000.00 before the victim realized what happened. For six months, the thief continued to steal an overall amount of $22,000.00.