Identity Thieves Targeting Prescriptions
When it comes to preventing
, you probably know that guarding your Social Security and Medicare cards are important. However, now it seems that you’ll need to be just as careful with your prescriptions.
Statistics show that stolen credentials can be a cause of identity theft. These stolen credentials can potentially grant thieves access to your medications, resulting in the possibility of them being filled at your expense.
Another form of identity theft by prescription is when an identity thief uses your information to have a medicine prescribed and filled, oftentimes using your medical insurance. When this happens, you could be left paying the bill for medicine you don't even need.
Both of these identity theft actions leave you in an unpleasant situation; you'll either be without the medicine you need, or you'll have unnecessary medicine added to your medical record.
Unfortunately, these aren't the only forms of medical identity theft. Other signs that you may have become a victim include:
Receiving a bill for medical services you didn't have
Calls from debt collectors for medical debts you don't owe
Notices from your health insurance saying you've reached your benefit limit
Denial of insurance because of false medical records
All of these actions can come at a heavy price including the potential to ruin your
, loss of health coverage, higher health insurance premiums, inaccurate medical records or even legal troubles.
While it may be harder to detect medical identity theft once it has occurred, you can still take steps towards preventing it by making sure you treat all personal information as private, and considering signing up for an
service.