Prevent identity theft

Experts say consumers can reduce the risk of fraud by: (1) not sharing personal data with unknown emailers and callers, or on social networking sites and chat rooms; (2) keeping sensitive documents secure; (3) destroying unnecessary data; (4) choosing hard-to-guess passwords and PINs and (5) notifying financial services providers and the Equifax, Experian and TransUnion credit bureaus if fraud is suspected.