| Identity
Theft a Problem for College Students
By Julia Meyer
Like online privacy, many college students
think they're exempt from the problem of identity
theft, but researchers say one out of every
30 students will be targeted.
Undetected theft can cause headaches for students
applying for jobs because potential employers
routinely check the credit reports of applicants.
Victims of identity theft generally lose more
than six thousand dollars and spend more than
40 hours straightening out the mess.
UNC Senior Matthew Nunnelley says he can see
why college students might think they're immune
from identity theft.
“On campus, it’s kind of like
a closed environment so many people probably
assume that they’re safe from identity
theft because they know everyone around them
and it seems like a communal environment,” Nunnelley
said.
The author of a new book called Surviving
Identity Theft proposed a number of ways college
students can protect themselves, among them,
guarding your mail, keeping your financial papers
private, getting your credit report regularly,
being cautious when using public computers and
being smart about sharing personal information
on the Web.
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