Huntington Local

By Lynn Ruvolo

The holidays are quickly approaching and with that, it is generally accompanied by busy times and in some instances a bit stressful. There is shopping to do, cards to write, menus to plan and family and friends to visit. Because of this hectic time, it is also the time of year where we must be extra careful in watching our dollars, personal belongings and even our identity.

For the past decade or so a new variety of criminals, known as identity thieves, has surfaced. Identity thieves look for valuable personal information that belongs to others. This may include bank account, credit card and social security information. For the identity thief, a minimal amount of information can be used to establish a new identity. This allows the criminal to do such things as open bank and credit card accounts, get loans or obtain employment.

“In recent years, identity theft has become one of the fastest growing crimes in the United States,” stated Councilman Stuart Besen, “which is why it is so important to bring this to the attention of the public, especially our senior citizens. It could take months before the victim is made aware of any wrongdoing. In most cases, the victim learns of the crime after he or she receives a letter from a collection agency or is turned down for a loan because of a poor credit rating. Then the victim faces numerous obstacles and must spend hours sorting through the nightmare of reclaiming his or her identity.”

Although we cannot completely prevent identity theft from occurring, we can learn ways in which to minimize the risk of it happening to us. On Tuesday, Dec. 9 at 2 p.m., Besen, together with Detective Tom Gabriele of the Identity Theft Unit of the Suffolk County Police Department, will be presenting ways on lowering the risk of becoming a victim of identity theft. Topics will include credit card skimming, phishing online (cloning legitimate Web pages to illegally garner personal data), securing your personal information wisely and tips to use for secure passwords. This will be held in the Cinema Arts Center, 423 Park Avenue in Huntington. Space is limited, please call 351-3171 to register. The presentation will take approximately one hour.

Lynn Ruvolo works in Huntington Town’s Citizen Services Department.

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