Help Prevent Identity Theft

Written by Carl Mazzanti
December 31, 2005
11:00 pm

Help Prevent Identity Theft
from Phishing Scams

What to do if you’ve responded to a phishing scam

You can do your best to prevent having your identity stolen by a phishing scam, but no method or system can guarantee total safety and security.

If you suspect that you’ve already responded to a phishing scam with personal or financial information or entered this information into a fake Web site, there may be ways you can minimize any damage.

Step 1: Report the incident
If you feel your personal information has been compromised or stolen, immediately report the circumstances to the following authorities:

Your credit card company, if you have given your credit card information. This should be your first step. The sooner an organization knows your account may have been compromised, the easier it will be for them to help protect you.
The company that you believe was forged. Remember to contact the organization directly, not through the e-mail message you received.
The IFCC. The Internet Fraud Complaint Center (IFCC), a partnership between the FBI and the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C), works worldwide with law enforcement and industry to promptly shut down phishing sites and identify the perpetrators behind the fraud.
The Federal Trade Commission. If you believe that your personal information has been compromised or stolen, you should report the circumstances to the FTC: National Resource for Identity Theft and visit their site to learn how you can minimize any damages.

You can also report the phishing scam to the Anti-Phishing Working Group at [email protected] and to the FTC at [email protected]. To report the scam to these groups, create a new e-mail message addressed to them and attach the phishing e-mail to the new message. You can also copy the entire phishing e-mail and paste it in the new message. Do not use the “forward” option if possible, as this format may exclude information and requires more manual processing.

Step 2: Change the passwords on all your accounts
If you think you’ve responded to a phishing scam with password information or entered passwords into a phony Web site, change your passwords as soon as possible.

Step 3: Routinely review your credit card and bank statements
If you review your bank and credit card statements at least monthly, you may be able to catch the con artists and stop them before they cause significant damage.

Step 4: Use up-to-date antivirus and anti-spyware software
Some phishing e-mail may contain malicious or unwanted software that can track your activities or simply slow your computer.

Carl Mazzanti

Carl Mazzanti is Co-Founder and President of eMazzanti Technologies, Microsoft’s four time Partner of the Year and one of the premier IT consulting services for businesses throughout the New York metropolitan area and internationally. Carl and his company manage over 400 active accounts ranging from professional services firms to high-end global retailers.

eMazzanti is all about delivering powerful, efficient outsourced IT services, such as computer network management and troubleshooting, managed print, PCI DSS compliance, green computing, mobile workforce technology, information security, cloud computing, and business continuity and disaster recovery.

Carl Mazzanti is also a frequent business conference speaker and technology talk show guest and contributor at Microsoft-focused events, including frequent prominent roles at the Microsoft Inspire (Worldwide Partner Conference / WPC).

Carl, a serial Entrepreneur, gives back to the community through Entrepreneur teaching engagements at Georgetown University, the company’s ocean wildlife conservation effort, the Blue Project, and Tree Mazzanti.