Just last year alone, over 10 million people had their identities stolen according to the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC), a non-profit organization primarily funded by the Department of Justice.

To put that in perspective, that means you have about a 1 in 10 chance EVERY year at getting your identity stolen. If you were to get your identity stolen it will cost you an average of $550.39 in out-of-pocket expenses and it will take you an average of 116 hours and up to 12 months to repair the damage.

Preventing identity theft from happening is much easier than fixing an identity theft problem after it happens. There are some simple things you can do to protect yourself and your family.

Start by investing in a good cross cut personal paper shredder for your home. Be sure that it is “Cross Cut” and preferably one that has jam-free rollers or auto reverse and a safety guard if you have children in your home. Shred every paper document that has your personal information on it (except the documents that you want to keep of course), including all of the credit card applications you get in the mail. 68% of identity theft happens as a result of documents being stolen from recycle and trash bins.

If you have a son or daughter away at college, consider getting them a paper shredder as well. There are a growing number of college students getting their identities stolen, in part because they rarely shred documents containing their personal information. The damage is often greater because it takes them longer to figure out that their identity has been stolen.

If you have a significant amount of papers in your home that need to be shredded, you may consider taking them to a drop off site in your area. At most drop off sites they will shred your papers as you watch in a commercial grade shredder that accepts staples, credit cards, paper clips and sometimes even full binders. On average you can have a bankers box of papers shredded for between $5-$15. Your bank may offer this service free to its customers once or twice a year.

If you don’t want to have to bring all of your papers somewhere, you could have a 50-100 gallon locked bin delivered to your home. Spend a weekend cleaning out your file cabinets and fill it with all of your documents to be shredded. The company will pick it up and give you a certificate of destruction. This service varies by company and usually costs between $60-$100. Be sure you use a company that is certified.

What can you do with the shredded paper in your home? One idea is to bring it to your local Humane Society! They use it to make cozy animal beds. Or you could use it to pack and ship items, compost it or put it out with your recycling.

The best way to protect yourself is to keep your personal information safe.

Tags: Identity Theft