Thanks for stopping by The Gift Closet! I'm going to avoid politics, even though it is Election Day, as I am sure we all may be a little tired of hearing it...and if you are like me....reading blogs may be a little "escape" sometimes! ;)
So, today I would like to offer a tip on protecting your identity. Did you know that the only institutions you are legally obligated to give your Social Security Number to are your employer, your bank, and the IRS? Your utility company, cell-phone provider, or credit card company may request it, but there's no law stating you have to give it to them. Offer them your driver's license number or a PIN number instead, but not your SSN. Once you give it out, it can be seen by every Customer Service Rep or receptionist that can view your files. So, protect yourself from ID theft by guarding that SSN!
And a big thank you to Karen over at A Blog of Goodies for this award!!!
Here are the rules:
Post the badge on your site and link back to Maternal Spark (find the html code here). Tag 5 of your bloggy friends who have sparked creativity, conversation, controversy and friendships! That's it, it's easy to spread the sparky love so go on...do it!
I like to pass this award onto the following blogs who have a lot of spark . . .
1. The Pleated Poppy
2. Happy Chickadee
3. I Hate Whine
4. Thoughts from an Evil Overlord
5. Fabulous Fun Finds
My current giveaway ends tonight at midnight! Click here to enter now to win a beautiful Chenille Seasons Greetings Chenille Stocking from Cotton Candy Creations!
8 comments:
thankyou for the tip- I was just told this yesterday at the dmv- neat information to know
This is a really good tip...I will have to remember this in the future! =)
I never really thought about that. I do not like giving out my SS to anyone. Thank-you for the Tuesday Tip.
Thanks for giving us the heads up! I've never really thought about those customer service people having access to all that info!
Thank you for this reminder. We can't be too careful these days.
Joy from Texas,
Via BPOTW
oh, and I meant to tell you I love this blog background. Looks great. I feel so plain.
That's a great tip! We've had our debit card and credit card numbers stolen twice in the last two months, so I want to do what I can to prevent any type of identity theft! (visiting from BPOTW)
So true, so true (I work in the industry) BUT the downside is that the same institutions that request your SSN have the right to decline you for service if they so choose if you won't provide your SSN.
Credit card companies are the big one, as they are required by the Patriot Act to verify your identity in multiple ways and your SSN is one of the methods they use. If they don't have backup methods in place (which many don't) to be able to verify your credit history (which they use to decide whether or not to approve you and if so what credit line to provide) and your identity, they will not be able to process your application.
Short story long :) While you are not legally obligated to provide your SSN to them, companies that (per their policies not necessarily legally required) run credit checks on you may very well not do business with you if you won't provide your SSN.
Post a Comment