I just received a letter from my credit card company saying my account number, along with many others, had been compromised due to someone hacking into a database and that the company would be issuing me a new card.

One week earlier, a friend of mine told me he went downtown and had his debit card “skimmed” by someone working at a bar who proceed to empty $7,000 he had in his account. My friend told of the trials he went through to get the money back. Although I love technology, and I couldn’t imagine living without the convenience of credit and debit cards, identity thieves are making it a really scary time to have money.

Even the Lifelock guy, who put his social security number in all his ads to prove how well his identity protection service works, had his identity stolen. At this point, it almost seems that if someone wants your identity, he or she can get it relatively easily. However, there are still a few things you can do to keep your identity from being stolen and minimize the impact of someone obtaining your information.

Monitoring your credit and keeping yourself aware of any inaccuracies in your report are important steps to protect your credit. You can get a look at the information, which is on your credit reports, to check for potentially incorrect information for free once per year if you visit annualcreditreport.com.

Unlike other websites that offer “free” credit reports, this one doesn’t require enrollment in a credit monitoring service or have any sort of hidden fees. It also doesn’t advertise with a lot of commercials with clever jingles. You just have do decide if you want the information for free or if you want to pay for another catchy tune.

Besides just your credit card numbers, it protects your social security number and driver’s license number. You should never carry your social security card unless you plan to use it and you should not give your social security number out to anyone who isn’t issuing you credit.

Don’t be afraid to ask someone why he or she is requesting your social security number. Sometimes it’s preferable for them, but often there are other options to confirm your identity. I’ve been asked for my social security number by everyone from doctors on new patient forms to former employers as part of an exit survey, which they expected me to send through the mail. Leaving those blank has yet to be an issue for me and it can’t hurt to keep your information from being seen by people who don’t need to have it. 

If you are worried that something may have happened to compromise your information you can cancel any card you feel may have been compromised. You can also set up a fraud alert with the major credit monitoring companies – TransUnion, Experian and Equifax. To do this, simply call one of them, and that one will share your information with the other two. You have to renew the alert every 90 days, but it lets credit issuers know that you think you may have had your information compromised and they will get additional information from anyone trying to get credit in your name to ensure it’s actually you.

Being aware of little things, like whether or not an ATM appears to have been tampered with, is a really easy way to ensure that you protect your good name.