Protect Yourself against Social Engineering

Social Engineering is a criminal's use of psychological tricks on victims in order to obtain personal information for the purpose of Identity Theft or computer access. One of the most common techniques is used over the telephone, when a criminal impersonates an official of a bank or other financial institution and manipulates personal information from the victim. 

Social Engineering can be identified as any form of "low-tech" information gathering. A criminal may search through discarded mail to obtain account numbers (known as "Dumpster Diving"), others may stand behind a victim at an ATM machine to obtain PIN numbers (known as "Shoulder Surfing"). 

How can you protect yourself?
Never give out personal information on the phone or over the Internet unless you have initiated the contact or are sure you know whom you are dealing with. 

You may wish to invest in a home shredder to destroy old statements and bills rather than discarding them in the trash.

Always ensure that your PIN numbers and Computer Passwords are protected from wandering eyes when you are entering them.

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