New life is being breathed into an old identity theft scam. The Administrative Office of the Courts (http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/) has seen a recent resurgence in use of a jury identity theft scam.
Here’s how it works: you receive a call from the local court where you may or may not have ever served your time doing jury duty. “They”, the scammer, will state you failed to appear for your latest notice of jury duty and therefore may be fined up to $1500 and will be required to report to Superior Court for sanctions. The “scammer” on the other end of the phone requests to confirm your personal information, your name, date of birth and social security number, and often a credit card number so they can ‘remove’ the warrant for your arrest.
The Administrative Office of the Courts and Staff of the superior courts issue this reminder: They will never ask past or prospective jurors for financial details, credit card numbers, bank account or personal information like Social Security numbers. Although the courts may occasionally contact you by telephone, it is not for the purpose of securing personal information. The courts exclusively use postal mail for any correspondence of notice for jury duty.
If you receive a telephone call, an e-mail or other form of electronic communication from someone identifying himself or herself as a court employee and requesting your personal information, please contact the fraud unit of your local police department immediately and the jury office of your local court.

Are You Ready for November 1, 2009?

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Red Flags Rule goes into effect November 1, 2009, after a year of postponements. Are you prepared to follow the guidelines recommended by the FTC to prevent identify theft from occurring in your office? Do you realize that if you do not have policies and procedures in place to address the threats of identify theft in your business, you can be fined $2,500 per compliance violation?

Consider these questions:
• Do you have a system of checks and balances in place to ensure the patients you are treating are who they say they are?
• Have you completed a background check on all staff members to ensure all employees are who they say they are?
• Do you train every new hire on the Red Flags of Compliance? Have you set up ongoing training programs for your staff on the warning signs or “red flags” of identity theft in your day-to-day operations?
• How will you collect your treatment costs if you treat the wrong patient? Will you write it off as bad debt?

If you’re unsure how to address these important issues, The Identity Advocate is at your service!

The Identity Advocate is an identity theft and healthcare fraud prevention firm specializing in medical consulting and investigations. We teach corporations, professional practices, and consumers how to stop the loss of personal and professional information.

Failing to comply with the FTC Red Flag Rule will result in serious consequences. Let the Identity Advocate help you establish the policies and procedures essential for your practice to avoid unnecessary fines.

Call 310.831.4400 today for your complimentary consultation, or visit our Web site at www.theidentityadvocate.com.