In a recent article by Kathy Kristof titled "Fake Student Loan Site Steals Identities," Kristof informs readers about fake Sallie Mae accounts that attempt to steal student identities.
Kristof states, "However, students who attempt to be among the first 150,000 to take the bogus sites up on the offer are asked to provide personal information, such as birth dates and Social Security Numbers, allowing the sites to steal their identities, according to Scambook." This is one reason that everyone should be very careful about giving out their information. Scambook, a website that detects bogus sites and warns consumers about using them, is a way for consumers to make sure they are not giving their information to identity thieves.
The author claims, "The fake Sallie sites have a timely and attractive pitch: Due to the government shutdown, indebted graduates can apply for a loan 'forgiveness' program that would wipe away their debt." Their pitch seems plausible, but everyone should be careful about who they give their information to. People should be skeptical about what they read on the internet; therefore, if they see something on the internet that seems too good to be true, it probably is.
According to Kristof, "Another option is for people to start monitoring their credit report at annualcreditreport.com. This site provides one free credit report from each of the three credit bureaus each year. That gives you access to three reports each year (one from each bureau)." Monitoring your credit report is a good idea. Doing so will help ensure that there are no mistakes or purchases the consumer did not make.
This article connects to the world because identity theft is a global issue. One in ten Americans have their identities stolen each year. Identity theft, a bother that can ruin a person's credit, needs to be stopped.
Fake Sallie Mae sites have been stealing students' identities by claiming to wipe away student loan debts and asking for personal information.
