I hate moving. Absolutely hate it. Something always goes wrong, and the whole process of packing up a life and unpacking it in an unfamiliar place is something I never look forward to.

By my own estimate, I've moved over 20 times, one of those to another country (UK to US).  When I told the other writers I was moving with my wife to Portland, I was told to "protect myself from identity thieves."

I'd never heard of such a thing, and I did not relish the idea of adding yet another bother to the long list of things to worry about, but then I realized, it's my job to know about these things.

It doesn't take a brain surgeon to steal someone's ID, and even if you are vigilant, in this electronic age, it's likely to happen to you. You should do what you can to minimize your risks, but more importantly, you should be quick to respond if something goes amiss. Don't laugh. If it can happen to Fed Chairman Ben Bernarke, it can happen to anyone!

Ok, I'll be the first to admit, I didn't know much about this tech stuff. I'm the kind of guy that doesn't know to use his cell phone, but that's why this story was assigned to me. I was asked to do my own research and explain "SMiShing" and "Vishing." If this is over your head already, please keep reading. I wrote this with people like me in mind. When my editor started throwing these terms around, all I could think of was that they sounded like the kinds of web sites my teenage son gets grounded for reading.

A brief history for the rest of us
In the old days, criminals used to engage what they called “phreaking” which was using tricks to make free calls from payphones. During the 90’s, these guys expanded into “phishing,” which is either emailing or cold calling unsuspecting folks in order to steal their private information, like credit card numbers, social security numbers, and other things in order to commit theft or fraud.

Still with me?

Identity theft is a serious crime. It occurs when your personal information is stolen and used without your knowledge to commit fraud or other crimes. Identity theft can cost you time and money. It can destroy your credit and ruin your good name.

“I don’t remember opening that credit card account. And I certainly didn’t buy those items I’m being billed for.”

Maybe you never opened that account, but someone else did...someone who used your name and personal information to commit fraud. When an imposter co-opts your name, your Social Security number (SSN), your credit card number, or some other piece of your personal information for their use – in short, when someone appropriates your personal information without your knowledge – it’s a crime.

If you are deployed away from your usual duty station and do not expect to seek new credit while you are deployed, consider placing an “active duty alert” on your credit report. An active duty alert requires creditors to take steps to verify your identity before granting credit in your name.