Holiday Season Identity Theft: What to Know from National Expert John Sileo

76% of us plan to primarily shop this holiday with credit or debit cards. However, almost four in ten of surveyed shoppers have little or no concern about identity fraud happening to them this holiday shopping season! John Sileo works with the Dept of Defense, FDIC, AARP, and dozens more companies and brands you trust. He has been featured on 60 Minutes, Fox News and others.



Identity theft is rampant throughout the holiday season. Over the past 3 years stolen data being used in less than one week jumped from 33% to 71%, meaning that they steal today and shop today. Identity thieves count on our lackadaisical attitude toward monitoring our wealth.

Over 50% of all Identity theft is self detected. Here are a few tips to stay safe and keep an eye out for Identity Fraud this Holiday Season:

Monitor Your Credit Report - Look for any suspicious activity or unknown accounts. If you find anything new that you haven't applied for contact the responsible financial institution immediately.

Credit Monitoring Services - Services that companies like CSIdentity offer make it easy to ensure that fraudsters aren't accessing your personal information, accounts, or credit. Allowing them to do it for you will put you more at ease this Holiday Season.

Sign Up for Account Alerts - This way you will know immediately if anyone is making fraudulent charges on your account.

Switch to Online Statements - This way you can more easily access your accounts throughout the month rather than waiting until the end of the month for a statement.