Top Identity Theft Areas Fuel Need for Early Detection

Based on where you live in America can materially
increase the potential for identity theft and fraud.

A recent nation wide compilation of identity theft
reports indicate the top metropolitan areas are as
the following FTC reporting for 2005:

Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ

Las Vegas-Paradise, NV

Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX

Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA

Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Miami Beach, FL

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA

Houston-Baytown-Sugar Land, TX

San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA

San Antonio, TX

Denver-Aurora, CO

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA

Orlando, FL

Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Roseville, CA

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DV-VA-MD-WV

Charlotte-Gastonia-Santa Clara, CA

San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA

Chicago-Naperville-Joliet, IL

Austin-Round Rock, TX

Additionally, while the overall percentage of identity theft
may have decreased (less than 1 percent 2004 - 2005) according
to a recent survey conducted by Javelin Research, the average
fraud amount has increased.

The good news for consumers is early detection of identity theft
results in smaller average fraud amounts ($4,431 vs. $8,466)
and smaller consumer costs ($347 vs. $538) to reverse the damages.

So, our tip for today is to adopt these key early prevention
steps:

Get enrolled in automatic payroll deposit to your
bank or credit union account as an alternative to recieving
paper checks.

Scrutinize your bank and credit card statements
twice per month or even weekly through online
account access that's typically available for free with
your financial institution.

Adopt an automatic credit or comprehensive account monitoring
solution which also provides exception "alerts" backed up
by dedicated help staff to support you with remediation.