Full Notification

After the Holiday Season / After the Gifts Are Opened

Burglars know that many households have new, and oftentimes expensive, items in their homes following the December holidays – especially items such as new computers and peripherals, stereo components, televisions, cameras and other electronic equipment. In too many cases, residents make it easy for burglars to figure out which homes to target by putting boxes that identify their new gifts in plain view with their other garbage.

Avoid becoming an easy target for post-holiday burglars by not leaving boxes for new electronics and other items in the alley or other garbage pick-up locations for several days at a time. Instead, break down any boxes you are throwing out, put them in garbage bags and place them inside a trash/recycle can.

Think about keeping broken-down boxes inside – in a garage, for example – until the evening before your regular garbage pick-up. Some burglars actually look inside garbage cans for evidence of holiday gifts.

Take a Holiday Inventory:

The holidays are a good time to update – or create – your home inventory. Take photos or make videos of items, and list descriptions and serial numbers (or owner applied numbers). If your home is burglarized, having a detailed inventory can help identify stolen items and make insurance claims easier to file.

Make sure things like TVs, VCRs, stereo equipment, cameras, camcorders, sports equipment, jewelry, silver, computers, home office equipment, and power tools are on the list. Remember to check it twice!

Be sure to keep this list in safe location that can be readily accessed in the event you need to report any of these items lost/stolen to the police department.


8 tips to prevent post holiday credit card fraud

#1. To ensure your best chances of escaping fraudulent activity involving your credit card (which can occur even if the card isn’t stolen), follow these tips:
• Go over every transaction online and account for it. Inquire about unfamiliar purchases with family members who are permitted to use your card.
• Immediately phone the card issuer if you spot a suspicious transaction.
#2. Document order confirmations. Screenshot the final confirmation page of your purchase, and save the confirmation e-mail.
#3. Personal information protection. Before you buy online, review the website’s privacy policy regarding personal information requests and how this will be used. Consider it a red flag if you can’t find this information.
#4. Online purchase security. A secure website will have an icon of a padlock, followed by https:// before the website address in the URL. There are also many toolbars that offer a greet/red color code this is usually a feature in most browsers.
#5. Phishing scams. If any e-mails come your way requesting your personal or financial information, don’t click the malicious link inside; delete immediately. Some scam e-mails try to convince you there’s a problem with your order. Contact directly the site of purchase to verify whether or not there’s an issue with your order. Do not investigate this through the e-mail message.
#6. Beware of skimming. Carefully observe employees whom you hand your credit card to for purchases. A crooked employee may scan the card to obtain your number.
#7. Always take the credit card receipt, no matter how small the purchase.
#8. If you think your identity has been stolen in regards to new account fraud then you need to step it up.
• If you suspect fraud, contact Equifax, Experian and TransUnion to issue a fraud alert on your credit reports.
• Pull your credit reports from these three bureaus to check for any suspicious accounts in your name. Check your credit reports again in six months.
• Pull your credit reports for inspection (it’s free) every 12 months as a smart measure.
• Get a credit freeze
• Invest in identity theft protection.