Valuable Security Advice

Whether it's your cheque book and cheque card left on the table while paying a bill or your family heirlooms at home, you need to think about the potential for theft. Try to be careful at all times - a thief only needs a moment to make off with your valuables.

Personal Security is split into the following sections:

Personal Possessions
Money & Plastic	Handbags & Wallets
Jewellery & Watches
Important Documents
Passports	Financial details
Mail (Identity Theft)	Car documents
Valuable Items
Electronic Goods	Antiques
Computers

Personal Possessions

• Don’t make it easy for pickpockets. Carry your wallet in an inside pocket, preferably one which can be fastened, not your back pocket. If someone bumps into you in a crowd, see if you still have your wallet or purse.
• Cash is a favourite target for thieves, so try to avoid carrying large amounts. When on holiday abroad, take travellers’ cheques.
• If your credit card is stolen, tell the card company IMMEDIATELY. Keep the number handy. If you delay reporting the loss, it could lead to a crime being committed in your name, as a thief could make fraudulent use of your card. Thieves can use credit cards for over the counter and telephone purchases.
• Never carry the personal identification number (PIN) with your cash dispensing cards. Always memorise your number, and never disclose it, not even to bank staff or close friends.
• Sign new plastic cards as soon as they arrive, and cut up old ones.
• The Association for Payment Clearing Services, through its Card Watch campaign, offers practical advice on how to look after your plastic cards. See the HELP panel at the end of this section.
• When using cashpoints, be aware of people looking over your shoulder or standing to close. Also be aware of cashpoints that look suspicious. Criminals have been known to tamper with machines so they can record your pin and then steal your card. If you are in any doubt about a machine or people standing too close- find a different one.

Never let your handbag out of your sight. On public transport, keep hold of it, with the clasp or zip shut so a thief cannot steal your purse. Always carry your purse or handbag close to your body. Do not carry your handbag by the handle or place your arm through the strap and let it hang. Place one end of the handbag in the palm of your hand, the other in the bend of your elbow. Draw it close to your body. Hang on to it firmly especially when walking close to other people.

In the office, keep it in a drawer, or in a corner near to you and out of sight. Even in a car, keep it out of sight – if you have the windows open or a door unlocked a thief may reach in when you stop in traffic.

Always keep your wallet or purse out of sight. NEVER keep it in your back pocket or anywhere a thief could steal it out of your sight. Try not to keep large amounts of cash in your wallet, if you have to, try not to let anyone see, such as when you make a purchase.

If you have any jewellery or a watch that is expensive try to keep it out of sight. This is true of fakes and items that look expensive - a thief won't know the difference until they have it in their hand.
If you have any item of jewellery that is unique it is worth while taking photographs and keeping them in a safe place in case the item is stolen.Try not to keep valuable jewellery in your jewel box - this is the first place a thief will look. Depending on the value of the item, you should consider using a safety deposit box or personal safe.

Important Documents

Only carry your passport when you need to. Passports are worth a lot of money to a thief and they can easily be sold on. This could ultimately result in people committing serious crime under your name. Proving your identity in this situation can be very difficult. Try to keep you passports in a safe place, preferably locked away, and not in an obvious place like in a filing cabinet under 'passports'!

It is possible to do a lot of fraud with some very simple financial details. Information like your account number, sort code and PIN numbers should all be kept in a secure place and destroyed if not needed. Check whether your life assurance or saving plan documents could be used to cash in the policy, if they were stolen. If they could, your bank is the best place to store them.

A new crime called 'Bin Raiding' is becoming increasingly popular in this country.‘Binbag gold’, as it is known, consists of any paperwork carrying personal or financial details or a signature - a recent study found that 86% of domestic rubbish contained information helpful to fraudsters.. Prevention of identity theft is possible and simple, though reversing the after effects is not.

• Rip up, shred or burn documents.
• Never put personal documents into a recycling bin.
• If you move house, redirect mail from day one otherwise all kinds of bills and statements could fall into the wrong hands via your old address (especially if the new residents throw it away intact).
• Check bank and credit card statements promptly and regularly to identify any unfamiliar transactions.
• Use different passwords for different accounts.
• Anyone who has been mugged or burgled should be aware they might also fall victim to identity theft.
• Any personal information on your computer need to be encrypted or password protected
• Be suspicious of anyone seeking too much personal information - don't be afraid to ask why it is required.

Don't leave documents such as vehicle registration and MOT certificates in an obvious place. If a burglar steals your car, these documents significantly increase the street value of the car. This goes for your driving licence as well - this can easily be used as proof of identity when committing fraud - especially if you have the old style licence with no photograph - consider getting the new style.

Valuable Items

Keep a list of all serial numbers for your electrical items, including TV, video, Hi-Fi, DVD etc. This will not only help with your insurance claim but aid the police in identifying stolen goods. Also mark them all with a UV marker or get them etched, stating your post code and house number. (see home security)

Many antiques by their very nature are reasonably unique. This means that the police can identify stolen items relatively easily. Take colour photographs from several angles of all your antiques. Also photograph any hallmarks, internal workings or distinguishing marks. This is a good addition or alternative to postcode marking, (see home security) if you don't want to damage the item or if it is too small to mark. For more information, view the "Crime prevention advice for everyone" news article.

To help keep a record of your antiques, fill in a "Arts and Antiques record form" (112KB pdf file - requires Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available as a free download by clicking the icon below)

Computers are a popular item to steal. Making sure your home is secure will help guard against this, but there are some extra steps you could take:

• Keep your computer in a locked cabinet, or lock the door to the room you keep it in to make it harder to steal.
• Use security screws and bolts to make it harder for people without the correct tool to open the casing to steal parts (but check with the manufacturer that this does not affect any guarantee)
• Use passwords, make back-up copies on disk and 'watermark' documents. This will help protect your copyright and will mean you have a copy of your work if the computer is stolen.
• Be very careful with financial information. For example, don't send your bank details in an e-mail. If you are ordering goods over the internet, make sure the company has a secure server.
• If you need to carry a laptop computer with you, try to be discreet about it. Many laptops have distinctive bags, so try to put it in something else, and follow other personal security advice. It may also be useful to carry disks in a different place.

There are also many issues regarding people accessing your machine via the web or send 'viruses' to you. You can minimise this problem by:

• Purchasing anti virus software. Your local computer shop will be able to help you in your purchase, or there are free versions available online.
• Always keep your anti virus up to date. This is usually done online.
• Don't open emails that you aren't expecting. If they have an attachment (a file or program that you can click on) DO NOT OPEN IT. Most viruses are sent via email but they don't effect your machine until you click on the attachment. Many viruses are sent with an email reading something along the lines of "here is that document/movie/sound/file you asked for" or "something I thought would interest you". If you suspect you have been sent a virus delete it immediately and FULLY (not just to your deleted items folder). If you suspect you have caught a virus disconnect from the web IMMEDIATELY, many viruses, once activated will send themselves to everyone in your address book.
• If you have any problems or receive lots of viruses all the time, contact your internet provider (ISP) i.e. AOL, Freeserve etc.
• If you are receiving lots of sexually explicit emails, don't reply. Many of these have an address to send to if you don't want to be sent any more emails. Most of the time this is just a check to see if your email address is used - if you reply you will no doubt be inundated with many more messages. On most email programs you can send messages from a certain source straight to your deleted items.
• The best way to stop this happening is not to register your email address on any untrusted sites. Large companies who ask you to register are usually safe. You could also set yourself up a 'spam' email account that you can use when you register on sites or give your email out to people you don't trust.

Some information taken from Home Office website