One Identity Theft Tip That Many People Forget

There are several identity theft tips that we have shared such as the pretty obvious ones such as to shred or cut up your expired or closed plastic credit and debit cards. Putting them in the trash whole leaves you exposed to dumpster diving crooks who search garbage for personal information. However, there is one identity theft tip that many people forget to follow and you will be surprised how simple, but powerful it is.

Risk Of Not Signing Back Of Your Credit Cards
Did you ever forget to sign the back of your credit card? This is one identity theft tip that many people forget. In fact, as I was preparing to write this I noticed that I have a Best Buy credit card that I have not signed. Most stores and restaurant staff are pretty good about catching unsigned cards and then reminding you to do so before they process your transaction. An unsigned credit card that gets lost could be picked up by anyone, they can sign your name on the back and in most cases they would get away with charging items and never having to pay for them. You would be stuck with the bill and having to spend your valuable time fighting the credit card company to straighten things out. Signing the back of your credit cards is a fairly obvious identity theft tip, but it's not exactly what today's topic is all about.

Three Little Words Help Protect You From Identity Theft
Think about the scenario above where someone finds and uses your unsigned credit card. How could you create an additional layer of protection from identity theft? By neatly writing the three little words "ASK FOR ID" above your signature, you are requesting that a store clerk or restaurant server literally ask you to show photo identification to further validate that the card belongs to you. If a crook tries to use your credit card but does not have photo id (like a drivers license) to prove that the card belongs to them, a smart checkout clerk will refuse the transaction.

Be Proactive At The Check Out
Part of today's identity theft tip also involves exercising a little common courtesy. When you hand a store clerk your credit card that is signed and has "ASK FOR ID" also written in, be proactive and have your drivers license or other valid photo identification out and ready to show. Don't write in those three little words and then get annoyed whenever your restaurant server comes back to your table to request your photo id. In fact, you should say "thank you for asking" because from my experience, only 50% of clerks and servers bother to check the back of the credit card.

What About Using Those Three Words Only?
Based on other identity theft tips that they have either read or heard about, some people only write "ASK FOR ID" in the signature line of their credit cards. Some people think that by doing this they aren't revealing their true signature style in the event a crook steals or finds their lost credit card. Not so fast. Depending upon the legal terms of your credit card agreement, not having your authorized signature on the back of your card could cause more harm than good.

There are a lot of credit cards that have specific wording on them that by signing and using using the credit card that you agree to the terms of your credit card agreement. Some of those terms protect you from liability in the event of a lost or stolen card. By not signing the card a court could interpret that the agreement was not in effect and you could be stripped of any protections your cardholder agreement stipulated. To summarize today's identity theft tip, be double sure of protecting your rights by always doing both; sign your credit card and then write in the words "ASK FOR ID" above your signature.