Educate Yourself About Identity Theft
This site was started as a resource to help prevent people from becoming victims of phishing and vishing attacks. The best defense is education so please play the video below to hear a real vishing call. You will learn the common techniques that are used to get you to part with your credit card numbers and Social Security Number. It is also an interesting insight into the depths of human evil.How to Help
If you believe that you may be a victim of identity theft, please contact your local police department and visit the FTC's Identity Theft website. The FTC also has information on how to prevent and combat identify theft. Here are some other possible actions:- Send this video to those you know who may be vulnerable to such fraud.
- Remove the economic incentive for vishers to commit fraud by wasting as much of their time as possible. We don't recommend actually baiting vishers by providing fake credit card information as was done in the video above. Just putting them on hold forever should be enough. You should be aware that you may be placing yourself on vishing calling lists if you employ this tactic, however. Also, please exercise caution when dealing with criminals.
- This is probably the most difficult. Pray for those who commit these crimes. God can transform the most hardened heart, and even phishers can become "fishers of men."