College students are finding out that they are easy targets for identity thieves

College students are finding out that they are easy targets for identity thieves. Many students experience their first credit cards during this time and really don’t know how important it is to shred their statements, Filling out applications over the internet can be particularly dangerous and especially if the documents are printed and not shredded. Over 1 million college students lose their identity per year. The worst part is that on many occasions the victim is personally involved with the thief. In many cases a roommate.

One student at Queens college learned the hard way that your credit rating can go down fast and take a long time to go back up. After having his license and other information in his wallet stolen on campus, he had his bank account hacked and his credit card had been run up. After hundreds of hours working to repair his credit he gave up. The rating will go up but it will take time. For a young person starting out their credit rating is of the utmost importance.