New research from the Better Business Bureau (BBB) shows that people have more control over identity theft than they think. According to WEAU.com, the biggest misperception about identity theft is that consumers are helpless to protect themselves.

The research also reveals that victims often know the person stealing their identity. In addition, the majority of identity theft cases are not online thefts. Some of the top methods of identity theft are:
• misuse of credit cards
• forged checks
• “phishing” phone calls
• stealing a wallet or purse
• stealing mail from your mailbox.

Finally, the report revealed that adults between the ages of 25 and 34 have the highest rate of ID fraud.

The state of Wisconsin — in response to an identity theft scare — has introduced a new policy that restricts legislative employees from taking home documents that contain sensitive personal information. The Associated Press reports that employees that violate the policy could be fired.

The state’s new policy is a reaction to recent events that have highlighted the dangers of identity theft. Shortly after admitting that thousands of taxpayers’ Social Security numbers in mailed tax forms, the state elected to assign tax identity numbers to each taxpayer to help secure residents’ identities. Ironically, days later, insurance documents containing the names, addresses and Social Security numbers of state Assembly members and their aides were stolen from an employee’s car.

The state paid for all 109 representatives and staff members affected by the theft to set up credit monitoring and receive a credit history report. According to lawmakers, the state has taken important first steps with its new laws; however, more work needs to be done to protect its citizens.

IBM is creating new privacy software that aims to protect users during online payment transactions. According to InternetRetailer.com, IBM’s Identity Mixer software allows online purchasers to hide or make anonymous their personal web information used in making online purchases, such as credit card account numbers and dates of birth.

Users would provide encrypted digital credentials issued by trusted parties like a bank or government agency when transacting online, instead of sharing credit card or other details in plain text. The software will help protect user privacy by sharing only pseudonyms, so real identity information can never be intercepted or exposed.

The Identity Mixer software, which will be marketed under IBM’s Tivoli software brand, allows people to purchase products without revealing their credit card number. It will also allow shoppers and merchants to confirm a user’s spending limit without sharing their bank account balance or provide proof of age without disclosing their date of birth.

According to Government Technology, identity thieves will be out in full force this tax season. Fortunately, there are ways to protect yourself during tax time.

Many people mistakenly think that avoiding online exchanges is the way to go. In fact, research conducted by Fellowes shows nearly 40 percent of Americans believe identity theft is most likely to occur through online exchanges. However, online exchanges represent only 9 percent of the crime. The majority of identity theft crimes occur through paper documents and stolen information.

“Tax season can leave consumers with mountains of paperwork, which makes them more vulnerable to identity theft,” says Kristen Gehrig, director, global marketing for Fellowes. Therefore, it is critical to protect or destroy personal and financial documents.

Simply knowing what needs to be filed or shred can reduce your chances of identity theft:
• Tax returns
• Investment statements for taxable accounts
• Bank statements
• Credit card statements
• Pay stubs
• ATM receipts
• Canceled checks
• Retirement plan contributions
• Insurance policies, wills and other legal documents

Damon Darlin writes in today’s New York Times about the propensity for our SSNs to end up in places where we’d prefer they not. Apparently fame or fortune offers few benefits in this arena, as individuals as well known as Donald Trump, Jeb Bush and Porter Goss (former CIA director) have their in SSNs easily available on the Internet. In the case of Trump, the SSN compromise took place through the online publishing of state documents, but in other instances the source of breach can range from spyware to your regular service providers. “People think it is the banks, but banks are very secure,” says Panos Anastassiadis, CEO of Cyveillance. “The problem is every dentist’s office has Social Security numbers. Every doctor’s office has them. How secure are these?”