Identity thieves are constantly tricking people into providing personal information that enables the criminal to steal the identity of the unwary victim.  The latest ploy being used by identity thieves throughout the country starts with a telephone call that you receive purportedly from your bank, informing you that your debit card has been deactivated for various reasons.  You are then told that in order to reactivate your debit card, you will need to speak with a customer service representative.  In order to process your request, the phony customer service representative asks for personal information, which is then used to make you a victim of identity theft and steal the money from your bank account.

TIPS

Never give out personal information to anyone whom you have not called at a number that you know is accurate.  Even if your caller ID indicates that the call is from your bank, you cannot trust your caller ID because a savvy identity thief can spoof or copy the telephone number of the bank so it appears as if the call is coming from your bank.  If you do receive a call regarding any banking matter and the caller asks for personal information, you should hang up and call the bank directly at a number that you know is accurate to find out what the truth is.