Tax Time or Prime Time for Identity Theft

By now, most of you have received your W-2's and other tax reporting forms used in preparing your taxes. The question is: where are those forms kept in your home? Are they lying on a table top or somewhere anyone can see them? Or, are they in a locked box or file cabinet?

Your W-2's, and other IRS reporting forms, include your Social Security Number and, in some cases, financial account information. These numbers can be a gold mine for identity thieves. They literally can kidnap your identity: obtain a job, open up new lines of credit, access existing financial accounts or stock portfolios, get welfare, avoid a criminal history and generally create havoc in your life.

For the identity thief, tax time is a prime time of opportunity. With that in mind, the Identity Theft Resource Center(R) wants to remind consumers and businesses to be careful when handling tax-related documents and information.

Americans worried about social security numbers

Many Americans are worried that their social security numbers will be stolen and used to steal their identity, a recent survey has found.

Identity theft through the internet or mail is a major worry for many in the US, the survey from Consumer Reports discovered. A full 89 percent of Americans would support government initiatives to cut down on the use of social security numbers.

Jeannine Kenney, a policy analyst in Washington, DC, with Consumers Union, commented: "The widespread use of social security numbers has made it easier for crooks to commit fraud and contributes to an estimated ten million cases of identity theft every year." Though they were first created for the retirement benefit system, social security numbers have grown to be used as a national identity system, Ms Kenney added.

There is a need for more regulation on who can ask for the numbers, she continued. The Social Security Act was created in 1935. Click here for information on digital products and services.