Denton County Living Well Magazine March/April 2018 | Page 21
Get These Things Out Of
Your Purse Or Wallet Now!
Y
By Glen McKenzie
our wallet can easily become cluttered with loyalty
cards, coupons, cash, checks, store credit cards and
a host of identification cards. Not only is an over-
stuffed wallet a hassle to carry, it may make identity theft
easier. Think about going paperless. Turn your phone into a digital
file box. Information can be encrypted to keep it out of the
hands of malicious people but still accessible to you if you
need to check a purchase.
Give your purse or wallet a good once over. Look for things
you don’t regularly need, and take them out. Every store offers its own card and incentives. Those cards
can really add up. Tack on an extra couple of cards for gas
purchases, everyday expenses and work-related stuff, and
you could easily end up with a wallet or purse full of plastic.
Some things should never be in your purse or wallet. If you
see these items as you’re trimming down your daily carry,
take them out i mmediately.
1. Your Social Security card
It’s easy enough to stuff the card into your wallet when you
need it for identification and then for-
get about it.
That could be a big mistake. Thieves
can use your original Social Security
card to apply for all kinds of unse-
cured debt in your name. Canceling
your Social Security number and
getting a new one is a complicated,
time-consuming process, and you
may be liable for fraud as you do so.
3. Tons of credit cards
If your wallet or purse is stolen, each one of those cards has
to be canceled individually. Forgetting even one can cost
hundreds or thousands of dollars. Thin your collection down
to the one or two you use regularly. Look for those that can be
widely used, provide the lowest
fees and best acceptance rates.
Once you’re down to your top
cards, make a list of their num-
bers and the steps you’d need
to take to cancel them if neces-
sary.
Keep yourself safe, and get the card
out of your wallet. Put it in a secure
location in your home, like a safety lock box.
2. Receipts
This is by far the easiest way to accumulate paper in your
wallet. You never know what might be needed later and you
stick them all into your wallet. Before you know it, you’ve got
a novel-sized stack of transactions.
This could be serious trouble if your purse or wallet is ever
stolen or lost. Thieves can use the last four digits of your
credit card number on a receipt to build a profile of your
purchases, and can fish for more information with a mer-
chant who has the card on file, like a cable company or an
online retailer.
Don’t forget that it is also impor-
tant to keep your address and
all phone numbers updated
with your financial institution
and credit card carriers. This
enables them to quickly notify you if fraud is suspected or
to send you alerts/notifications if something looks suspicious
on your account or credit card.
Your Turn: It’s time to think about what’s tucked into your
purse or wallet. What items make your “essential carry” list,
and what can you safely leave behind?
is your local, member-owned credit union. It would be our
pleasure to help you with any financial need you might have.
Call us at 940-387-8585, go to our website at datcu.org, or
stop by any of our eleven (11) convenient branch locations
if you are considering a new financial partner in your life.
It would be our pleasure to serve you!
Glen McKenzie, President/CEO of DATCU Credit Union,
may be reached at 866-387-8585.
DENTON COUNTY Living Well Magazine | MARCH/APRIL 2018
19