Book Review: '50 Ways to Protect Your Identity and Your Credit' by Steve Weisman

50 Ways To Protect Your Identity and Your Credit: Everything You Need to Know About Identify Theft, Credit Cards, Credit Repair, and Credit Reports. Steve Weisman. New York: Prentice Hall. 2005. 232 pages, including index. ISBN 013146759X. Available from Amazon.com for $13.57.

There's an old saying, meant to be humorous: "Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you." This statement is actually true, when it comes to identity theft. Identify theft is the fastest growing crime in the United States, and ruins thousands of lives each year.

That's not an overstatement. It's possible to recover from a one-time theft of money, or belongings, (as long as it hasn't been accompanied by violence, of course). But with identity theft, lives are turned upside down forever. The money keeps disappearing, more than its victims would ever think possible, and the reputation of the unfortunates are destroyed. What makes it worse, if possible, is that if these white collar criminals *are* captured, their punishment hardly ever fits the viciousness and pitilessness of their crimes, and they rarely are forced to make restitution to their victims.�

It is much better to be proactive - to ensure that you keep your identity, and your credit, safe.�

Richard Weisman's book will help you do this.�

It's written in clear, easy-to-understand language, for all education levels. The table of contents page lists every eventuality that the reader would need to deal with. Weisman also provides real-life 'horror-stories', examples of identity criminals and victims.