People say that March and April are the two worse months of the year due to tax season.  I guess in a way I can agree but in my mind it’s something that needs to be done regardless of how horrible it’s going to be so I just try to muscle through it as fast as I can so that I can put it behind me for another year.

Just remember that tax season is when ALL of your most important information is all in one place so you need to be extra careful and make sure your tax information doesn’t fall into the wrong hands leading to identity theft.

Here are a few tips you should try and remember this tax season:

• There are hundreds if not thousands of tax prepares that claim they can check current as well as past tax returns to get you the largest refund.  Make sure the person you get to check your returns is legit and belongs to a reputable tax firm.
• While doing your taxes at home never leave all of you important tax documents laying out in the open.  When you are finished with your taxes be sure to secure your documents.
• Make sure if you are searching for tax forms online to only search www.irs.gov.  Any other site could be phishing for your personal information.
• NEVER carry your social security card with you.  Always keep it in a safe place at home.
• Keep important documents locked in a safe if possible.
• Buy a shredder and shread any documents that you no loonger need that may contain your personal information.

Now that tax season is in full swing be sure to keep your eyes open and your guard up to identity thieves and even more so once the tax season is over.  Thieves will be hoping that once tax season is over you will let your guard down which will allow them to steal your identity without any fight.  Don’t be that person.

Also, don’t forget to play the LifeLock for Life Sweepstakes on Facebook where all you need to do is “LIKE” LifeLock on Facebook then visit the LifeLock for Life tab and begin playing by answering different questions for great prizes. For the month of March/April the questions will be focusing on tax time so make sure you play every week for a chance to win some really cool prizes.

Be sure to follow LifeLock on Twitter, Facebook and Google +

I have received compensation for my participation as a LifeLock Ambassador but ALL opinions are my own.

For the month of January and February we are talking about buying a new home while keeping your identity safe.  You can see my post that I did for January HERE.

Buying a home is the biggest purchase we will ever make and keeping our identity safe while doing so is just as important and buying the house.  These days everyone asks for our social security number to verify our identity but we as consumers and home buyers need to make sure that doesn’t fall into the wrong persons hands.  Our identity is who we are and we need to remember that and keep it as safe as we possibly can.

I am not saying you can never reveal anything about yourself to anyone but here are a few tips to remember that will help safeguard your identity:

• Never give a person or company your Social Security number unless they have a legitimate reason for knowing it. If a company doesn’t need to check your credit, they most likely don’t need your Social Security number.
• Keep all financial documents in a safe place like a lockbox or safe.  If you no longer need statements or documents that contain your personal information be sure to shred them so that your information doesn’t get into the wrong hands.
• When buying a new home and moving use a reputable moving company that comes highly recommended.  Never use a mover unless you know who will be handling your personal items.
• Consider placing an alert on your credit report. Fraud alert messages notify creditors to verify a person’s identification before extending credit in that person’s name.
• Be present during your entire move if possible.  Movers that see you walking around and checking stuff out will be less likely to try any funny business.
• Transport any sensitive information yourself like wills, bank statements, credit card statements, etc.
• NEVER keep your laptop or desktop computer open and unattended during your move.  Keep them password protected and close by so that your information doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.

So like I have said in the past none of the above tips are 100% fool proof but you can greatly reduce your risk of identity theft if you are extra cautious and take the extra steps necessary to keep your information and identity safe.

Also, don’t forget to play the  LifeLock for Life Sweepstakes on Facebook where all you need to do is “LIKE” LifeLock on Facebook then visit the LifeLock for Life tab and begin playing by answering different questions for great prizes.  For the month of February the questions will be focusing on buying a new home so make sure you play every week for a chance to win some really cool prizes.

Be sure to follow LifeLock on Twitter, Facebook and Google +

I have received compensation for my participation as a LifeLock Ambassador but ALL opinions are my own.

Buying a new home is one of the most important purchases you will ever make in your life so you need to make sure you are 100% ready before making that leap.

Believe it or not Melinda and I haven’t gotten to this point yet for one reason or another.  The main reason is because we have moved around a lot due to my different jobs and another reason is we aren’t 100% sure where we would like to settle for good.  Personal finances play a part in this equation as well and seeing the amount of foreclosures in America makes me think twice about ever wanting to buy a new home.

For those of you that are in the process of buying a new home and will be planning on moving in the near future here are a few times that might be useful:

• Be sure to put in a change of address at the post office as well as changing your address with your bank, employer and any other place where they might be sending you financial documents or checks.
• Keep all important documents in a safe during your move so that you know everything is safe and secure.
• When buying new furniture and items for your new home using a credit card with a small credit limit is better than using a debit card.
• If your new home doesn’t have a locking mailbox be sure to replace it with one that does as soon as possible.
• Be sure to use LifeLock to monitor your credit because they are relentless in helping you protect your identity so you can have peace of mind while enjoying your new house.

Also, don’t forget to play the  LifeLock for Life Sweepstakes on Facebook where all you need to do is “LIKE” LifeLock on Facebook then visit the LifeLock for Life tab and begin playing by answering different questions for great prizes.  For the month of January and February the questions will be focusing on buying a new home so make sure you play every week for a chance to win some really cool prizes.

Be sure to follow LifeLock on Twitter, Facebook and Google +

I have received compensation for my participation as a LifeLock Ambassador but ALL opinions are my own.

For most people the holiday hustle and bustle has already started or will be very soon so the last thing on peoples minds is protecting their identity. If you have LifeLock they are relentless in helping you protect your identity so you can have peace of mind but that doesn’t mean you should slack off. You still need to take precautions while away from home this holiday season.

If you are traveling and staying in a hotel the first thing you want to take advantage of if possible is the room safe. You want to be sure you lock up all important documents that you may be traveling with like passports, birth certificates, airline tickets, etc. You also want to make sure not to share any personal information and if you are required to you should ask why to be sure it’s a legitimate reason and not someone just phishing for your personal information.

Here are a few others tips that may come in handy while you are on the road this holiday season.

• Try to get your receipts electronically if possible – A lot of retails are offering the option to receive your receipt in paper or electronic form. Getting your receipt electronically will help you keep your information a little more secure.
• Stay Alert – When using ATM’s be aware of people standing around and make sure that they aren’t looking over your should and also be on the lookout for strange looking ATM’s. Also be aware of shoulder surfers when using your credit cards in stores as people may take a picture of your credit card information.
• Have your mail picked up – If you are going to be away from home for any length of time and do not have a locked mailbox be sure to have someone get it for you. This helps reduce the chances of your mail being stolen. If no one can pick up your mail put it on hold at the post office.

Hopefully this holiday season everyone will get a chance to enjoy family time and having LifeLock on your side will allow you to focus more on your family and less on identity theft.

Also, don’t forget to play the  LifeLock for Life Sweepstakes on Facebook where all you need to do is “LIKE” LifeLock on Facebook then visit the LifeLock for Life tab and begin playing by answering different questions for great prizes.  This month the questions will be focusing on safe holiday travel so make sure you play every week for a chance to win some really cool prizes. Also, the sweepstakes runs through 2013 so you will have multiple chances to win.

Be sure to follow LifeLock on Twitter, Facebook and Google +

I have received compensation for my participation as a LifeLock Ambassador but ALL opinions are my own.

It’s hard to believe that it’s November already but the reality of the situation is Christmas is less than two months away. With that being said it’s time to begin shopping for the holidays but if you are like me you shop from the comfort of your own home in your pj’s with a nice hot cup of coffee or hot coco.

I love online shopping because of the convenience but the one thing that I always worry about is the security of my information. There would be nothing worse than my credit card information or even worse my identity being stolen.

I have family that lives far from us so I will typically send them food or something that is ordered online and delivered directly to their house. If you are like me and do most of your shopping online and I am sure most people are these days because finding coupons, free shipping and online deals is so easy there is almost no reason to leave the house. Now I say almost no reason because when it comes to clothing I actually need to go to a brick and mortar store because I have to try on my clothes 99% of the time.

So in the spirit of the holidays and online shopping here are a few tips that I think may be able to help keep your information safe while shopping online this holiday season.

• NEVER buy from a site that redirects you from your original destination. You run the risk of it not being legitimate and you could possibly have your information stolen.
• Never share your social security number when ordering online. There is no reason for anyone to ever ask for this when shopping online.
• If you have a disposable credit card with a pre loaded amount associated with it that would be safer to use than a credit card. Reason being is if someone does get a hold of this information they can only steal up to the amount on the card.
• Use your home computer rather than a public computer as you have no control over the anti virus protection or anything else on a public computer.
• Keep your home antivirus on your computer up to date. This is the easiest way to help protect your information from being stolen.
• Let LifeLock keep you protected while online because they will keep you protect and notify you if and when suspicious activity occurs.

I am not saying that my tips above will stop online theft during the holidays but it will help reduce the chances significantly.

Also, don’t forget to play the  LifeLock for Life Sweepstakes on Facebook where all you need to do is “LIKE” LifeLock on Facebook then visit the LifeLock for Life tab and begin playing by answering different questions for great prizes.  This month the questions will be focusing on online donating so make sure you play every week for a chance to win some really cool prizes. Also, the sweepstakes runs through 2013 so you will have multiple chances to win.

If you aren’t out shopping be sure to join #LifeLock on November 23rd (Black Friday) for an awesome Twitter party at 3 pm PST.

Have fun shopping this holiday season but be safe at the same time!

I have received compensation for my participation as a LifeLock Ambassador but ALL opinions are my own.