MARINE CORPS LOGISTICS BASE BARSTOW, Calif. -- Military members make big targets for identity thieves. At all times they wear their dog tags and carry their military identification. Full name, blood type, social security number, rank, birth date, branch of service and a photo can be found on those two items. Not to mention that social security numbers could be found on almost every document from chow hall rosters to duty stations transfer orders.
When someone becomes a victim of identity theft, they are not responsible for the debts that are acquired using their names, but they are responsible for notifying their creditors and restoring their credit records, which can be time consuming and expensive. Discovering identity theft and repairing the damage that was done can be an especially big hassle for someone who is deployed to a combat zone, stationed on a ship at sea or training in the field with no communication to the civilian world. There are now special steps that can be taken to protect military finances and credit from identity theft.
“Protecting personal information is one of the biggest things that a person can do to protect themselves from identity theft,” said Capt. Aniela Szymanski, MCLB Barstow Staff Judge Advocate.
Some common ways that identity thieves can get personal information are through stealing wallets, stealing mail, posing as businesses over the Internet and stealing files that contain personal information from places of business. If information is stolen, common uses are opening bank accounts, charging purchases to existing accounts, taking out loans or using your identity to evade arrest or the authorities.
“You can lower your chances of having your identity stolen just by being conscious of your personal information,” said Szymanski.
“Doing things like shredding your mail, not carrying your social security card in your wallet, not giving out personal information over the phone, having a locked mailbox and not giving out pin numbers to anyone, can heighten protection,” she said.
There are ways that service members can protect themselves, while deployed and at home. Service members can place an “active duty alert” onto their credit report when they are away from their regular duty station to minimize the risk of identity theft when they are deployed, according to the Federal Trade Commission Web site. The alert requires creditors to verify your identity before granting credit in your name.
“Your credit report has all your financial information on it, and checking it over for suspicious activity is one of the most efficient ways to catch suspicious activities,” said Szymanski.
“With the passage of an amendment to the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, it is now easier than ever to get a free copy of your credit report by going to www.annualcreditreport.com.
Another way that service members are now more protected is the Defense Finance and Accounting Service have dropped the first five digits of social security numbers from leave and earning statements.
The DoD also teamed up with the FTC to form Military Sentinel, an online complaint network that enables military members and DoD civilians employees to report identity theft and other consumer fraud.
If a military member finds they have become a victim of identity theft, they need to report it to their chain of command, the SJA, the credit agencies, the local police, the social security administration and their creditors as soon as they discover it. “It is important that as soon as a Marine learns they are a victim of identity theft, they report it. The longer that a person waits allows more time for the thief to use their identity,” warned Szymanski.
Identity theft is on the rise and everyone needs to be taking precautions to avoid this crime. Military members need to be especially cautious and take the preventative measures to ensure this doesn’t happen to them.
Editor’s note: Information used in this story was taken from www.militarymoney.com and www.mccsonesource.com