Every time there is some kind of major news or event happening in the US identity thieves and other criminals use it to their advantage to scam people, like the Obama video scam that had a virus in it. With the 2010 census just around the corner I thought it would be a good thing to discuss what to expect from the census and how not to get scammed.

The 2010 census in the US is going out in about two weeks and is set to be mailed on March 16th. They are due to be mailed back by April 15th. If you fill out the census and mail it by the due date there will be no reason for you to be visited by a census worker. If you are visited by a census worker after having filled out the form you should be suspicious.

Things to lookout for!

When the census takes place residences will receive a letter telling them they will receive a form in the mail, a phone call, or a visit from a Census Bureau representative. Most importantly the Census Bureau will not never ask for your social security number or any other sensitive financial information like bank account numbers. So if you are asked to provide such information don’t and contact the authorities.

You will not be able to complete the form online so don’t fall for a fake census website that are trying to steal your information. Census employees will carry a official badge that has on it an expiration date and the Department of Commerce watermark. The census workers also will conduct their business right at the door and will never ask to come inside. You should be suspicious if the census taker insists on coming inside.

So know what to look for and don’t give away any sensitive information like your Social Security Number or bank account information. If you filled out a form and mail it by the due date be cautious if visited by a census taker, or called on the phone. All and all the census is a good thing for your city and state, but don’t let it be a means of identity theft for you.

Tags: census, fraud, ID theft, identity theft, information, scam

This entry was posted on Friday, March 5th, 2010 at 8:32 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.