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April 16
The Better Business Bureau urges consumers to prevent identity theft by shredding personal documents. Free document shredding services will be available at four locations throughout the Charlotte area during the BBB's third "Secure Your ID Day" on Saturday, April 18, 2009, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Individuals and small businesses are encouraged to bring bags and boxes of documents to be destroyed on-site at one of these four locations:
· Pritchard Memorial Baptist Church parking lot, located at 1117 South Blvd., Charlotte, N.C. 28203 - Automated Shredding will be providing document and electronic shredding (computer discs, hard drives, cds, dvds, video tapes, cell phones). The U.S. Census Bureau will also be on-site.
· Charlotte Shred-It parking lot - 3421 Axar Road, Charlotte, N.C. 28208 (off Mulberry Church Road and Billy Graham Parkway). Charlotte Shred-It will provide document shredding.
· Carmel Road Post Office parking lot - 6300 Carmel Road, Charlotte, N.C. 28226. Charlotte Shred-It will be on-site providing document shredding.
· Mint Hill Police Department parking lot - 7200 Matthews/Mint Hill Road, Mint Hill, N.C. 28227. Mint Hill, N.C. 28227. Charlotte Shred-It will provide document shredding. This event is being hosted by the Mint Hill Police Department.
CMPD Detectives will be on hand to answer questions about identity theft and fraud. You can find additional information and resources at www.cmpd.org, www.minthill.com, www.shredit.com/_minisites/charlotte, or by emailing the Financial Crimes Unit at the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department at fraudmail@cmpd.org.
Special thanks to the BBB Consumer Foundation, the Mecklenburg County Consumer Fraud Task Force, United States Postal Inspection Service, Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department, the Mint Hill Police Department, N.C. Attorney General, U.S. Census Bureau, Charlotte Shred-It and Automated Shredding.
Last year, 8.1 million Americans became victims of identity theft resulting in the loss of $45 billion according to a 2008 report from Javelin Strategy and Research. The report notes that, contrary to popular belief, only 12 percent of identity theft is perpetrated online. The vast majority of identity theft occurs when the thief has direct contact with the victim's personal information such as through a stolen or lost wallet, or by rifling through the victim's mailbox or trash.
"When people think of identity theft, they almost immediately focus on hackers and online security," said Maryanne Dailey, Executive Director of The Better Business Bureau Consumer Foundation. "However, most identity theft happens when people fail to secure or properly destroy important documents." Properly destroying personal and financial documents is a key step in identity theft prevention.
The BBB offers the following guide on the types of documents to be shredded:
- Documents that include Social Security numbers, birthdates, PIN numbers or passwords
- Banking documents and other financial information
- Leases, contracts or letters that include signatures
- Pre-approved credit card applications
- Medical or dental bills
- Utility bills
- Travel itineraries
- Used airline tickets
- Personal DVDs, CDs, Videos
- Old cell phones
- Hard drives from old computers
- Floppy discs
For more advice you can trust on identity theft prevention and for guidance on what to do if your identity is stolen, please visit The Better Business Bureau online at www.bbb.org or call 1-877-317-7236 toll-free in N.C. and S.C.
Sgt. Walter Bowling
Financial Crimes
704.336.8292
www.cmpd.org
www.idsafety.org
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