The Lionheart Assurance Solutions Scam Prevention Toolkit has five recommendations on how you can safeguard your personal information on your debit card:

1. When punching in your card, you can protect your PIN number from “shoulder surfers” and hidden cameras by using your other hand to hide your fingers as they punch in the right combination.

2. Only use ATMs that you are familiar with and have used before. ATMs in kiosks, restaurants, and convenience stores, for example, can be easily tampered with and implanted with hidden cameras, skimming devices, and fake pin pads.

3. Keep an eye on your account balance, reviewing it regularly. You have a two-day window to complain about any unusual changes in your account balance.

4. Be suspicious if the ATM machine says that it has run out of money. Sometimes these can be fake machines, designed only to read all your card information and your PIN numbers. Notify your bank about any suspicious ATMs you have used.

5. Sometimes thieves can get your PIN number online. They send you an email, purportedly from your bank, asking you to confirm your account information. These are called phishing scams.

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Lionheart Assurance Solutions also recommends that you never rely on help from strangers if you have problems at an ATM machine. Sometimes, if your card is stuck in a machine, it is because a film of glue has been applied to the slot. A helpful stranger is only interested in reading your number sequence when you use the pin pad.

About Lionheart Assurance Solutions & The Lionheart Assurance Solutions Scam Prevention Toolkit

Lionheart Assurance Solutions is a business consulting company that has specialized in keeping clients up to date on issues related to identity theft. Numerous companies have recognized Lionheart Assurance Solutions as an outstanding service provider and, as a result, Lionheart Assurance Solutions has earned an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau, which is their highest awarded rating.

Lionheart Assurance Solutions is a consulting company that has mentored hundreds of companies on information security and identity theft issues. Lionheart Assurance Solutions is focused on helping people reduce the likelihood of becoming a target of identity theft scams. This consulting organization has been a champion in the war to fight identity theft since 2003.

Lionheart Assurance Solutions’ team consists of professional business consultants with regional offices throughout the US who specialize in offering unique employee benefits, identity theft education and identity theft risk mitigation. Lionheart Assurance Solutions – through the Lionheart Assurance Solutions Scam Prevention Toolkit – champions ways to better inform the public and their clients on how to mitigate the risks associated with identity theft.

Lionheart Assurance Solutions launched the Lionheart Assurance Solutions Scam Prevention Toolkit in 2009 in response to the growing needs of the business community to stay on top of the latest scams perpetrated by identity thieves.

The Lionheart Assurance Scam Prevention Toolkit recommends that businesses take immediate action on the following 5 strategies to reduce the likelihood of identity theft leading to data breaches:

1. Companies with an educated workforce, familiar with the many ways thieves can access company data, are much more likely to have employees who notice any unusual activities. These employees are much more likely to notice any phishing scams online or notice unauthorized personnel copying highly sensitive information.

2. Companies should have protocols in place for all their information systems. These can range from strict screening procedures before hiring new employees to safeguarding computers with passwords and encryption technology.

3. Companies should restrict access to sensitive information. Computers should be password protected, laptops and PDAs locked in steel cabinets when not in use, and file cabinets locked when no one is in the room.

4. Redundant or obsolete information should be properly disposed of when no longer needed. If the information is on discs, these should be destroyed using special devices for that purpose. If the information is on paper, these should be run through a paper shredder. And if the information is on hard drives, special software should be used to completely purge all files.

5. The Federal Trade Commission has published guidelines on information security in their document entitled “Complying with the Safeguards Rules.” This publication outlines security measures a company can take to reduce the possibility of identity theft leading to a data breach.

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Lionheart Assurance also recommends that companies who have installed various procedures for data protection stay up to date on security issues because identity thieves are constantly improving their ability to break into databases.

About Lionheart Assurance & The Lionheart Assurance Scam Prevention Toolkit

Lionheart Assurance is a business consulting company that has specialized in keeping clients up to date on issues related to identity theft. Numerous companies have recognized Lionheart Assurance as an outstanding service provider and, as a result, Lionheart Assurance has earned an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau, which is their highest awarded rating.

Lionheart Assurance is a consulting company that has mentored hundreds of companies on information security and identity theft issues. Lionheart Assurance is focused on helping people reduce the likelihood of becoming a target of identity theft scams. This consulting organization has been a champion in the war to fight identity theft since 2003.

The Lionheart Assurance team consists of professional business consultants with regional offices throughout the US who specialize in offering unique employee benefits, identity theft education and identity theft risk mitigation. Lionheart Assurance – through the Lionheart Assurance Scam Prevention Toolkit – champions ways to better inform the public and their clients on how to mitigate the risks associated with identity theft.

Lionheart Assurance launched the Lionheart Assurance Scam Prevention Toolkit in 2009 in response to the growing needs of the business community to stay on top of the latest scams perpetrated by identity thieves.

Phishing is spamming hundreds of thousands of people with a single email. The scam artist is hoping for a few people to take the bait when they open the email. However, spear fishing is a completely new variation on the phishing scam. It is also much more effective and dangerous. By sending a single email to a single person, the email is highly targeted, and because it includes personalized information, it seems completely authentic.

The Lionheart Assurance Solutions Scam Prevention Toolkit recommends the following 5 precautions when opening your email:

1. Do not view or download any attachments sent to you by someone you do not know.

2. Similarly, do not click through a link in an email from someone you do not know.

3. Sometimes a letter from a friend or co-worker may not actually be from them but from someone who has replicated their email address. There is special software that can steal email addresses from out of your address book and then appear to send the email from that person. Be very suspicious if people you know start making unusual requests of you.

4. Again, do not view or download an attachment, even from people you know unless you’re actually expecting it.

5. If you do respond to a spear phishing email, keep an eye on your credit report or your bank balance and take immediate action to notify those concerned if you detect anything unusual.

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Lionheart Assurance Solutions also recommends that you turn all of these aforementioned precautions into new habits, which should become as familiar to you as locking your car door when leaving it out on the street.

About Lionheart Assurance Solutions & The Lionheart Assurance Solutions Scam Prevention Toolkit

Lionheart Assurance Solutions is a consulting company that has mentored hundreds of companies on information security and identity theft issues. Lionheart Assurance Solutions is focused on helping people reduce the likelihood of becoming a target of identity theft scams. This consulting organization has been a champion in the war to fight identity theft since 2003.

Lionheart Assurance Solutions’ team consists of professional business consultants with regional offices throughout the US who specialize in offering unique employee benefits, identity theft education and identity theft risk mitigation. Lionheart Assurance Solutions – through the Lionheart Assurance Solutions Scam Prevention Toolkit – champions ways to better inform the public and their clients on how to mitigate the risks associated with identity theft.

In 2009, Lionheart Assurance Solutions launched the Lionheart Assurance Solutions Scam Prevention Toolkit in response to the growing concerns within the business community to stay on the cutting edge of the most recent scams perpetrated by identity scammers.

Lionheart Assurance Solutions offers support to businesses of all sizes and they work to enhance identity theft awareness training and employee benefit programs.

Scammers use one of two methods to defraud merchants online.

One method is to use fictitious numbers that imitate the algorithms produced by authentic credit card numbers. These numbers pass authentication and get authorization codes.

The other method is to buy stolen credit card information from a newsgroup and use these fake credentials to buy a merchant’s products online.

Lionheart Assurance Solutions recommends the following 5 action steps related to this scam.

1. Refuse to accept an order unless there is full verification of address and telephone numbers.

2. If the billing field is different from the shipping field on the online order form, the customer should fax their signature and credit card number before the transaction is authorized.

3. If the verification address uses a free email service that anyone can open within minutes, pay attention. Although a legitimate order can come from a free email address, it also opens the door for the use of a fake credit card number. Such an order necessitates more concern and consideration.

4. An order that is much larger than the typical amounts customers order is suspicious.

5. International orders must have the same billing and shipping address.

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If an order has a different billing and shipping address, comes from a free email service, or is larger than typical order quantities, pick up the telephone and speak to the customer to confirm the transaction.

Started in 1997, Lionheart Assurance Solutions is a business consulting company that focuses on reducing the likelihood of identity theft. They have an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau. They educate companies on how identity theft can occur and suggest ways that a business can be proactive about protecting sensitive information. Lionheart Assurance Solutions released the Lionheart Assurance Solutions Scam Prevention Toolkit in 2009 in order to enhance awareness of scams perpetrated by identity thieves.

This information can be stolen in many ways. Here, for example, is one possible scenario:

After buying a client a meal, a company executive hands the corporate credit card to the waiter. The credit card is taken into the backroom and then returned. When the credit card was out of sight, all the information on it could have been copied.

Lionheart Assurance Solutions recommends the following 5 ways to protect a corporate credit card.

1. When a company opens up a credit card account, it should use a unique password. This verification information should be unique, not something that can be found by going through routine company documents.
2. Question the authority of the person requesting the information about the credit card. Does the person asking for information have a valid need to know it?
3. Avoid putting credit card numbers on forms or checks. If someone is calling on behalf of the company, make sure they are an authorized user of the credit card, not any available employee who has been delegated the task of calling a vendor to order merchandise.
4. Check the billing statements every month to make sure that only authorized charges have been made. If the billing statement itself does not come, someone could have made a fraudulent change of address.
5. Once a year, or more often, read through a credit card report from Equifax, Experian, and/or TransUnion.

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If you believe that the corporate credit card has been used in a way that can’t be explained by the authorized users, then:

1. Contact the credit card company immediately (this limits liability).
2. Contact the fraud departments of Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.
3. Contact the creditors.
4. File a report with the local police department.

Although Lionheart Assurance Solutions cannot protect, avoid, or prevent identity theft or any other crime, they can alert their customers on ways to improve their information security. Lionheart Assurance Solutions released the Lionheart Assurance Solutions Scam Prevention Toolkit in 2009 in order to enhance awareness of scams perpetrated by identity thieves.

Lionheart Assurance Solutions has noted a rise in the number of scams related to stolen personal information over the past 5-7 years. The company is bringing today’s most advanced identity theft coverage to the masses through a unique identity theft benefits package. These benefit packages are offered to employees of a client company.

Empowering Employees To Monitor Personal Information And Fight Back Against Identity Theft

The unique benefits package allows employees to fight back against the possibility of identity theft. The benefits are paid for through payroll deduction. Those who enroll in the Lionheart Assurance Solutions employee benefits package to reduce the incidence of identity theft can stay alert to their credit for unusual activity indicative of a stolen identity. The around the clock credit monitoring gives them peace of mind. Moreover, in the event that a fraudulent scam or ripoff artist compromises an individual’s personal information, they can take immediate steps through legal counsel and through the assistance of a Licensed Fraud Investigator offered directly through the identity theft restoration service, who will work tirelessly and on the behalf of a person who has been compromised.

The Detailed Benefits Of The Unique Package

The Lionheart Assurance Solutions identity theft coverage is available to individual employees, offering them individualized benefits. The coverage creates a mechanism for employees. It is not the company that gets the coverage, but the employees themselves. This is an optional enrollment program made available by the company. Those who choose to participate can keep an eye on their credit history because scam artists likely to use the stolen personal information to open up a credit card under the new identity. In the event of identity theft, participants, as part of their membership, can also talk to a lawyer and obtain the services of a Licensed Fraud Investigator who will provide full service identity theft restoration.

The Lionheart Assurance Solutions Senior Management Training Team

The unique benefits package is a result of the ideas put together by the senior management team at Lionheart Assurance Solutions. This team has the combined business experience of more than a century. Some members of the Lionheart Assurance Solutions team have senior executive leadership experience in some of the nation’s largest and most prestigious companies.

Visit Lionheart Assurance Solutions website for more information.

Lionheart Assurance Solutions works with companies to assist in mitigating risks associated with identity theft and to offer employee benefits that can lead to improvements in employee productivity and reductions in lost work time. The nationwide team of consultants first begins by identifying potential areas of need related to how the client company operates their business. One of the things that they often find necessary to discuss with the CEO of the company is the need to protect personal sensitive data. Unless a company has information security checks in place when employees are handling sensitive personal data like social security numbers, the company could be at risk. The possibility exists for data breaches leading to identity theft and potential investigations related to compromised confidential information.

Noting the rise in this type of information leak, Lionheart Assurance Solutions utilizes a two-fold program related to identity theft:

One part of the program is creating a mechanism for employees to have personal identity theft restoration coverage. Through payroll deduction benefits, an employee can purchase round the clock credit monitoring, access to legal counsel, and identity restoration. This gives the employee peace of mind in the event that identity theft does occur.

Another part of the program is assisting in the formation of an ongoing initiative for employers to safeguard employee and customer personal information in the workplace. For example, if someone in human resources were to leave employee files with sensitive information on the desk and leave the room for lunch, anyone entering the office could gain access to that information. Similarly, leaving computer programs unguarded, with no password protection, or leaving file cabinet unlocked, are all ways that sensitive personal data could get in the wrong hands. Careless handling of receipts and log books are other ways personal information can be stolen. By helping a company identify various ways that personal sensitive data is not secured, Lionheart Assurance Solutions provides valuable assistance designed to reduce the likelihood that a company would be found lacking in information security.

Lionheart Assurance Solutions conducts a variety of trainings to raise employee awareness about the many ways identity theft can occur. These training sessions provide an important education for employees and help to safeguard the company itself. The sessions are designed to make those employees who have access to personal information more aware of how to protect that information. With such awareness training and access to innovative employee benefits, employees can get the best coverage available while employers implement the best practices to keep sensitive information confidential.

These identity theft programs are tailored for each company to meet their unique needs and implemented at no direct cost to the client company.

Identity theft is a growing problem, and it comes in many forms. Every day, criminals and fraudsters use the credit card information, social security numbers, employment or medical histories, and even character references of unsuspecting victims for their own nefarious purposes. Identity theft can be as simple as fraudulent credit card purchases, or using someone else’s name and identity to get a job or a loan. It can be as complicated as social engineering the victim’s friends and associates to obtain “secure” passwords or other secrets appropriate only for the business environment.

The best way to stop identity theft, in all its forms, is to prevent it in the first place. Through awareness training at Lionheart Assurance Solutions, LP, workers will learn how to spot all kinds of scams, secure their data and passwords, and protect their privacy. If identity theft does strike, they will learn how to clear their names—all covered by the included benefits, and not done using company time or expenses.

This is an increasing problem everyone wants protection from, but you first have to learn why it takes place so frequently. If you think identity theft is enabled entirely by the websites you visit, you are wrong. In reality, identity theft usually happens as a result of small mistakes made by the victim, either unknowingly or as a result of carelessness.

For instance, you have to be very careful when paying with credit or debit cards on a shopping trip since these cards can be manipulated or stolen in the process of an ordinary transaction. Even as late as 2006, many stores were still printing entire credit card numbers on standard invoices and receipts. This is valuable information for scammers who know how to use credit card numbers to their advantage. Old fashioned carbon machines that were previously used to create copies cards that would later be processed was very dangerous because anyone could have easily picked up those credit card numbers and used them.

Today, standard practice has changed so most stores only provide the last 4 digits of each card number. This is much safer, but there is still room for improvement. Always shred your receipts and invoices and never leave them inside shopping bags, even if they are with your purchased items. You don’t even want to throw them away in public trash cans…or your home trash cans for that matter! Shredding them is the safest way to protect yourself.

Lionheart Assurance Solutions recommends that you try to shop with cash whenever possible, for a very simple reason. Cash cannot be duplicated as credit and debit cards can. Of course, you also have to protect yourself if you use ATM machines to withdraw large sums of cash for shopping trips. Be mindful of how close other people are standing while you use the machine and do not allow them to stand directly beside you. Always be careful of suspicious looking people as they may be trying to acquire your pin number.

Some scammers even use mobile phones with video capability held at just the right angle to record your hand movements, which can later be used to determine your pin number. Other scammers use high-tech gadgets that copy card numbers from the magnetic strips on the back of all credit and debit cards. This is why credit identity theft is the most common variety of identity theft. It is up to you to safeguard yourself against this crime.

Even your personal living space such as your car or home must be secured with extra measures. The good news is you can protect yourself in all instances. Remain on guard even when in your home and vehicle. You don’t want to lose valuable personal information if someone manages to break into your home or vehicle as it can cause a lot more long term damage than losing cash, jewels and other high dollar belongings.

Realize that today, your personal details and all information pertaining to bank accounts and security numbers is more valuable to a thief than your music systems and large sums of cash sitting around. So, make sure that you keep all important documents with any variety of personal information in a secure location. Identity theft has very severe consequences in the future, so be careful and protect yourself!

So, what different types of identity theft are there, and which ones do you need to be concerned about. Let’s take a look at some of the different ways someone can steal your identity.

Character identity theft – This is one of the more serious types. Character identity theft could cause you to be charged with crimes you never committed.

Theft of your social security number – Someone who steals your social security number can get all kinds of private information on you. They have access to your bank statements, old tax forms, private records and more. They can take out new accounts in your name, and it’s hard to trace, since the thief has your identification.

Drivers’ license theft – When the thief gets a valid copy of your drivers’ license. If this person commits a driving offense while they have your license, you could end up with points on your license. You could also end up paying for auto insurance you never bought, or find your premiums rising because a thief was in an accident.

Medical identity theft – If someone else has used your identity at a hospital or medical facility, you could find that you’re denied insurance coverage. You could be charged hospital and medical bills that you aren’t responsible, and have to pay for treatments and medications you never received.

Credit theft – The type of identity theft most people are aware of, credit theft often happens when a thief gets into your bank account or borrows under your name. This can leave you in serious financial straits. A thief can apply for big loans, new credit cards, and all kinds of other types of credit, ruining your record and causing real problems when you buy a home or a car.

Now that you know what kinds of problems you can face from identity theft, you also know to be careful. Lionheart Assurance Solutions recommends that you keep track of your belongings, never trust anyone with your personal information, and be very careful of online frauds that try to harvest your numbers for someone else’s use. If you believe your identity has been stolen, act fast. Report the fact to the authorities, get in touch with your creditors and the credit reporting bureaus, and have your credit rating frozen. Get new copies of all your forms of ID and credit cards, and have the old ones invalidated. It’s the best way to take action against a thief.