I resisted shopping online for the longest time. I feared my credit card number would be stolen and that I would spend a few years of my life trying to explain that I did not buy a Hummer with my Visa card.
Turns out lots of folks are fearful of identity theft, a crime in which someone steals key pieces of your personal and financial information in order to impersonate you to get goods and services.
In one survey, 58 percent of consumers polled said they may reduce their online shopping during the holiday season because of identity theft and other privacy concerns. The online shopping study was conducted by TNS, a marketing information company, and TRUSTe, an online privacy company.
Eight percent of those surveyed said they are so concerned about identity theft that they won't shop online at all.
Although online shopping has its risks, your credit card number and other personal information are just as likely to be stolen in a very low-tech way.
To identity thieves, a crowded mall is what a Chuck E. Cheese's restaurant is to children -- a paradise of commotion.
This time of year, criminals are just waiting for you to leave your purse unattended or open as you hustle around looking for holiday gifts. They love men who carry their wallets in easy-to-pick places.
Although 77 percent of consumers claim they take precautions to keep their identity private, nearly half still carry their Social Security number in their wallet or purse, according to an American Express study. Twenty-eight percent of those surveyed don't check to see if a Web site is secure when shopping online.
So, at the risk of repeating information you have already heard, here are some tips to help you avoid being a victim of identity thieves:
• Write "Check photo ID" in ink on the back of your credit card, near your signature. This is an effective way of reminding cashiers to check the credit card against your photo identification. It's just one more safety check and because it's there, my experience is that I'm asked for more ID about 90 percent of the time.
