Here are some tips from the National CPA Financial Literacy Commission to help Americans prevent and reduce the effects of identity theft.

The Social Security administration maintains a robust cyber-security system, but you are the most important factor in helping them keep your information safe.

Examples of phishing messages, how to deal with phishing scams, action steps, report phishing emails

Learn how to protect yourself from identity theft while away on deployment.

Credit scores influence risk of identity theft

From the Federal Trade Commission: How to protect your personal information and privacy, stay safe online, and help your kids do the same.

What can happen in a data breach and what should you do.

Did you recently get a notice that says your personal information was exposed in a data breach? Depending on what information was lost, there are steps you can take to help protect yourself from identity theft.

They’re the worst of the worst: scams that target people who have already lost money to a scam. If you’ve been scammed, you may be targeted by a refund or recovery scam. In these scams, someone says they can help get your money back or recover the prize or item you never got, but you need to pay them first. If you do, you’ll lose more money.

If an investment sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Check here!

From the Federal Trade Commission: Learn about the latest scams, and get advice to help you avoid, report, and recover from them

Report identity theft to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) and use their online tools and resources to learn how to report identity theft and develop a recovery plan.

Spanish language version of the above.

Warning signs and what to do in cases of tax-related identity theft. Article also available in other languages.

The ITRC is a non-profit organization established to minimize risk and lessen the impact of identity theft.