Don’t Be A Victim!
(This post was originally posted on Ms Sparky on May 31, 2008. I moved it to Blue Behind Bars when I separated my personal blog from my political blog.)
If you read my “I Got Mugged In Istanbul” blog you remember that my bank accounts were seriously compromised because I used a public computer in Istanbul to check my account status after being mugged.
Here is an excerpt from an article I just read on this very subject entitled: “7 Surefire Ways To Become and ID Theft Victim” by Sheyna Steiner (to read this article click the link above)
For maximum risk, commit the computing equivalent of licking a handrail in a New York City subway station and do some online banking on a public computer — like the one at the library or a public cafe. Bonus points are added if your Social Security number is your user ID for any transactions.
Evidently, I did the equivalent of licking a handrail in a New York City subway station. That analogy just makes me want to gag!!!!
This is an informative and well written article with some humor thrown in. You may be amazed at how often you put yourself at risk. Can you answer yes to any of the following questions:
1. Do you use a wireless network in your house?
2. Do you mail out checks for bills from your mailbox?
3. Do you carry your Social Security card in your wallet or purse?
4. Do you ever give personal information via email?
If you answered yes to any of these question, do yourself a huge favor and read the article. I thought I was totally educated on protecting myself from identity theft and I learned a lot.
For every defense we take to protect ourselves, identity thieves are counter attacking. It’s a freakin’ war!!!
Ms Sparky
I Got Mugged In Istanbul-Part 1
(This post was originally posted on Ms Sparky on May 20, 2008. I moved it to Blue Behind Bars when I separated my personal blog from my political blog.)
When Cal and I were working in Baghdad we took the opportunity to take our R&R’s in places we had always wanted to visit. We spent our first R&R in Cairo, Egypt riding camels and exploring the pyramids at Giza. We had decided we were going to spend our next R&R in Phuket, Thailand. When Phuket was hit by a devastating tsunami in December 2004, we decided to go to Istanbul, Turkey instead.
Istanbul (aka Constantinople) is a very old and beautiful city. There are an abundance of attractions such as The Topkapi Palace, The Hagia Sophia, The Blue Mosque, The Grande Bazaar, The Spice Market and The Orient Express to name only a few. The museum at Topkapi Palace was my favorite. It is the home of the Spoonmaker Diamond (aka The Kasikci Diamond). A single 86 carat stone surrounded by 49 individual stones (see photo) That would look soooo good on my finger!!
Unfortunately, Istanbul is also the pickpocket capital of the world. Read more
I Got Mugged In Istanbul-Part 2
(This post was originally posted on Ms Sparky on May 21, 2008. I moved it to Blue Behind Bars when I separated my personal blog from my political blog.)
Continued from “I Got Mugged In Istanbul-Part 1-See Below
Fortunately, Cal had enough taxi fare to get us back to our hotel where there was an internet cafe. I needed to contact Wells Fargo Bank so I logged into my Wells Fargo account. I checked my accounts and and after several tries was able to contact Wells Fargo via the “International Number” and cancel my cards. It would appear I had acted quickly enough and had averted any potential damage to my accounts. So I thought.
I then contacted the US Consulate. I was so afraid I was going to be stuck in Istanbul for weeks without a passport. But, do to the large number of US Citizens needing replacement passports, the US Consulate in Istanbul is one of the few in the world that can make you a temporary passport “while you wait”.
I didn’t sleep well that night. I just replayed the mugging over and over in my head. What could I have done differently? How could I have prevented this? Why was I targeted? Who knows, but being the victim of anything is just not OK with me.
The next morning we headed out bright and early to the US Consulate across town. There was a shop owner right across the street that took passport photos….how convenient. Read more
If You Have That Kind Of Extra Money….Send It To Me!!!
(This post was originally posted on Ms Sparky on May 17, 2008. I moved it to Blue Behind Bars when I separated my personal blog from my political blog.)
Since Tiffany has been down (prison lingo for incarcerated) now for about 2 1/2 years we thought it was time to get a copy of her credit reports and see what the damage was. I figured she’s not that old….how bad could it be? And because your FICO score is tied to just about everything…employment, insurance, apartment rental, I thought it’s best to get it squared away now.
I have an account at FreeCreditReport.com (love it) so I signed her up as well. Oh My God!!!! Not only was there Identity Theft (on her), bogus accounts (not hers), there was nearly $6000 worth of traffic tickets.
$6000 WORTH OF TRAFFIC TICKETS!!!! What the hell. What a damn waste of money. For someone who has never had a traffic ticket (me) it’s like throwing your money out the window. The thought of turning my “run to the store” into a $250 or more trip, all to gain 5 or 10 minutes is incomprehensible. It’s makes that gallon of milk real expensive.
Granted, $1800 worth of those tickets is due to identity theft and we have hired an attorney to take care of that. But the rest are legit. They are hers.
I just don’t understand wasting that kind of money of traffic fines.
If you have that kind of extra money….send it to me. I can make better use of it than the State.
Do you know what your FICO score is? If you haven’t looked at your credit report lately, you may be amazed at what’s on there.
I will be blogging more about fixing Tiffany’s credit reports. I am getting to be quite the credit report pro. Feel free to ask me questions.
Ms Sparky
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