(This article by Latayne Scott originally appeared in the March 2020 issue of Military Officer, a magazine available to all MOAA Premium and Life members. Learn more about the magazine here; learn more about joining MOAA here.)

Resourceful identity thieves necessitate resourceful solutions to combat them. Military personnel are particularly vulnerable to identity theft. According to the Federal Trade Commission, there were more than 10,000 reports by servicemembers of consumer credit card fraud in 2018.

Sometimes a loss can be as low-tech as a purse snatching. Lt. Col. Jack Mattson, USMC (Ret), tells of a client of his firm, IDShield. When her purse was stolen, she changed all her passwords and then opted to give power of attorney to a IDShield licensed investigator, who then contacted each account manager. Within two days, says Mattson, “her accounts were back to pre-theft status.”

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But passwords are becoming passé, says famous former con artist Frank Abagnale. The inspiration for Catch Me If You Can (2002) is now a security consultant for the FBI and many other organizations.

“It’s time to get rid of passwords, such that they can stay in databases but are not part of the user experience,” Abagnale says. “Meaning, that we give users an option to log in with their smartphone and biometrics, so there are no static passwords used.”

“Passwords are for tree houses,” he adds. “Not logins.”

Update your phone regularly, and back it up to a computer.

According to Abagnale, apps are sneaky privacy stealers.

“Privacy is a moving target,” he says. “Delete an app altogether if you do not feel it is worth the privacy questions.”  

He also recommends giving your smartphone a name other than your own so it’s less descriptive on networks, setting your phone’s screen to lock after a few minutes, and enabling your “find phone” feature.

Latayne Scott is a freelance writer based in New Mexico.