- Be sure to conduct online transactions with companies that provide a secure Web site and won’t sell your Internet address to third parties.
- Shred personal documents that aren't needed anymore.
- Have credit file monitoring in place to spot any crime early.
- Get help acting quickly and effectively to halt fraudulent activity and keep your credit record clean.
When selecting a shredder, keep in mind the following guidelines to reduce or minimize the risk of becoming an identity theft victim:
Daily usage and sheet capacity.
"Think about how much you'll shred in a day, then double it. Most users shred twice as much as they think they will," said John Fellowes, product manager for Fellowes, Inc. The biggest difference between shredders is the varying levels of motor efficiency, duty cycle and speed. Also, it is important to keep in mind the number of pages the user can feed through the shredder at one time.
Security levels.
Some shredders offer "strip cut" which shreds paper into unreadable strips. Another type of shredder to consider is a confetti, or cross-cut, which produces smaller, confetti-like pieces. The finer cut also significantly reduces waste bulk.
Specialty shredding.
Today's shredders may offer the ability to shred credit cards, staples, paper clips and CDs, in addition to shredding paper.
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