KSLA News 12 Shreveport, Louisiana |How to keep your trash from becoming a criminal's treasure

How to keep your trash from becoming a criminal's treasure

SHREVEPORT, LA (KSLA) - In a bad economy, scam artists usually work overtime and the number of cases of identity thefts go on the rise.

So it's no surprise to learn that criminals are literally digging for your identity.

The Hills are a retired military couple, living on a set income and watching every penny. It's so important they take special precautions when destroying personal documents.

But as we found, sometimes they don't protect everything.

The Hills allowed us to look through their garbage, and they were shocked at what we found. A prescription bottle with personal information was first, then it didn't take long to find their bank information. We found their bank account number and the last four digits of a social security number.

A little more digging produced a deposit ticket. We also found their credit card documents.

It didn't stop there. We also learned more about the Hills after finding the number for their AT&T account, and discovered they own a timeshare in Los Legos.

The Hills thought they were doing a good job of destroying their personal information, but we found enough in their trash that could help a criminal build a profile on the Hills, making their trash a criminal's treasure.

Identity theft could affect anyone, even Lenora Hill's neighbor Robert Anderson.

He says he rarely throws away any vital documents, and on this day we find mostly food containers in his garbage.

But we did find some shredded documents in the trash, and still came up with some vital information.

Among the shredded pieces of paper, we found a social security number, a notice that Robert's wife Carol had won a trip, and a credit card solicitation. It was just enough information for a criminal to cash in on.

After seeing what we found, Robert said he'll probably re-shred everything and cut it up even more.

So what should you do to protect yourself from criminals and identity thieves?

First of all, take action. Don't just tear or toss personal documents into the can, destroy them.

Try shredding with a cross-cut shredder, which turns your personal information into confetti and makes it too difficult for criminals to put back together.

Or do as Attorney David Szwak recommends: deterrence.

Rip important papers up and put them in soup cans or Coke cans, anything to deter someone from getting to it. He says try using a trash compactor to really mash it up.

You should also melt credit cards that you're trying to discard or cut across the card sufficiently, and throw the pieces away separately.

Remember, once your garbage is set out on the curb it is fair game for anyone, so be pro-active and destroy the important stuff before it gets out there.