The truth, however, is that most "garden variety" identity theft doesn't involve cyberspace. Today, most identity thieves still rely on tried-and-true methods to get their hands on your paper records - real documents that can serve as the basis for their dirty work.

In the past, when a thief stole your wallet or purse, that person was after hard currency. Today, that thief is after your identity - not your money, and a few of your documents - a Social Security card, a driver's license or a credit or debit card - can be worth thousands of dollars in the wrong hands.

• What does the identity thief want?
• Where does the identity thief find these?
• How are these used?
• How can you defend yourself?

What does the identity thief want?
Simply put, the thief wants to become you - and the better you look on paper, the more likely you are to be a target. There are an almost infinite number of ways for a thief to steal your identity; we'll discuss the most common ones here. But everything starts with the thief's ability to get access to certain key pieces of information that belong to you. Here's just a few things the thief is looking for:

• Your Social Security card
• Your driver's license
• Your account numbers (bank, credit card and others), PIN(s) and passwords

Where does the identity thief find these?
In the real world, the answers to this question range from the absolutely obvious to the very unusual. Here are just some of the sources a thief may go to obtain your personal information:

• Your wallet or purse. Take just a moment right now to take out your wallet or open your purse. Imagine that you were up to no good. What could you do with the contents? While you probably don't have an excessive amount of cash, most of us have a great deal of personal information packed into this relatively small space. How many credit cards are you carrying? Do you have bank PINs jotted down to jog your memory? How about your health insurance ID card? Voter registration card? Driver's license, registration and auto insurance card? Frequent flyer or frequent guest cards? Car rental premium cards? Is your Social Security number on one or more of the documents?

• Your mailbox. In the wrong hands, your incoming mail can be a treasure trove of information about you. A bill from your credit card company, a statement from your checking account, an unsolicited offer of a new, pre-approved credit card (complete with application). And your outgoing mail may include personal checks you are sending to pay bills (containing your routing and checking account numbers). If you don't have a locked mailbox for incoming and outgoing mail, you are vulnerable.

• Your glove compartment. Some people's auto glove compartment contains their owner's manual, and not much more. For other people, it's a mobile filing cabinet, containing things like vehicle registrations, insurance cards, old bills, credit card receipts. If you left your car unlocked and someone got inside, how much personal information about you could they discover?

• Your trash. Because people find it hard to believe that anyone would want to pour through garbage cans, they throw away the darndest things - things like unsolicited credit card applications, old bills, expired credit cards, unused checking account deposit slips and countless other papers. So, for the identity thief, a bit of "dumpster diving" can provide a rich harvest of personal information - information that can be used to become you.

• You. Sometimes, you can be your own worst enemy. Simply put, the easiest way for a thief to steal your identity is to ask you for it. Posing as your bank, or your insurance company, or your doctor's office, the thief calls you on the telephone, gives you a plausible story and asks you for key pieces of personal information. This practice is called "pretexting", and you can learn more about the practice from the Federal Trade Commission.

How are these used?
The short answer is, "if you can dream it, the identity thief can - and probably has - done it. Here's just a short list of some of the things that identity thieves have done with the information and documents they've acquired:

• Use your credit card(s) to go on a buying spree, purchasing major items like computers and other electronic devices that can be easily sold.
• Open new credit card accounts, using your name, date of birth and Social Security number.
• Change the mailing address on your existing credit card account.
• Buy cars and take out the auto loans in your name.
• Establish telephone or wireless phone service in your name.
• Counterfeit checks or debit cards, and drain your bank account.
• Open a bank account in your name and write bad checks on that account.
• File for bankruptcy under your name to avoid paying debts they've incurred, or to avoid eviction.
• Apply for a job under your name.
• Give your name to the police during an arrest. When they are released - and if they don't show up for their court date - an arrest warrant could be issued in your name.

How can you defend yourself?
It is important to recognize that there is no way to entirely protect yourself from identity theft. That's because as you move through your daily life, you almost certainly carry personal information with you and leave bits and pieces of your personal information behind - in credit applications, insurance records, doctors' offices, etc. So, someone who is bound and determined to single you out to steal your identity can probably do so. But identity theft is most often a crime of opportunity. By that, we mean that if you make it hard for someone to steal your identity, the thief will move on to an easier target.

You need some basic self-defense strategies to combat identity theft. Let's take a look at some:

• Your wallet or purse. Let's begin here with the obvious. Don't carry your Social Security card in your wallet or purse (unless you are visiting the Social Security office - in that case, remember to put it away when you get home). Next, look for other documents which contain your Social Security number. For example, some states use that number as your driver's license number. If that's the case, ask your state motor vehicle department if they can assign you some other number on your license. Do the same thing whenever your Social Security number is used as an account number. If your Social Security number is on other documents, and you don't need them every day, consider leaving them at home.

• Credit/debit cards.
  • Don't carry one single card more than you really need every day. Many of us carry every credit/debit card we have, yet few of these cards get daily use. If you don't have them on your person, they are a lot less likely to disappear.
  • If you aren't using one or more credit cards, cancel them in writing with the issuing financial institution - then cut the card(s) into small strips before disposing.
  • Do not write your personal identification number (PIN) on the back of your credit card and don't write it on a little sheet of paper you carry in your wallet or purse. You might as well give a thief the keys to your car (We'll have more on PINs and passwords in our "Virtual World" section).
  • Instead of signing the back of your credit/debit card, write "check photo id" in the signature block. Many banks now issue credit/debit cards that display your photograph on the front. If that's an option with your bank, consider doing it. Both of these practices make it more difficult for a thief to use your card in person.
  • Check your credit card bills and bank statements carefully every month, looking for activity you don't recognize. Many banks now offer online banking services, allowing you to check transactions even more frequently. The quicker you spot a problem, the more you are able to limit the damage.
  • Make copies of the front and back of all your credit and debit cards, then place the copy in a secure location (not your wallet or purse, please). If your cards are stolen or lost, you'll have all the relevant information you need to contact the card issuers and report the lost or stolen items. This, too, will help limit the damage.
  • Finally, a good deal of stolen personal information comes from "pre-approved credit" offers you receive in the mail - and then discard unopened. This allows a thief to use the application to apply for credit in your name. If you'd like to stop these "pre-approved credit" offers, you can do so. The three major credit reporting agencies (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion) offer a single telephone number through which you can opt out of future "pre-approved credit" offers. Call 1-888-5-OPTOUT (1-888-567-8688) for more information.
  

• Your mailbox. A significant amount of identity theft happens within a few feet of your home - in your mailbox. Here are some important self-defense measures you can take:
  • Take your outgoing mail either to a local post office or deposit it in one of the postal service boxes in your neighborhood. If you leave outgoing mail in your own mailbox, you give a thief the opportunity to steal account numbers, checks and other valuable information.
  • Pick up your incoming mail as soon as possible after it is delivered. The longer it sits in your box, the greater the chance that it will be stolen.
  • If mailbox security is a concern within your neighborhood, consider asking your local post office about centralized mail delivery into locked boxes. Learn more here.
  • Finally, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service offers a quick "mailbox security quiz", which you can take here.

• Your glove compartment. By now, you know what to do. Go through your glove compartment (and, for that matter, your car). Remove any personally identifying documents that you have stuffed in the glove compartment, under the seats. What you leave in your car could be worth more to a thief than your car itself.

• Your trash. There is nothing a thief likes more than going through a bag containing a week's worth of paper trash. That's because every piece of paper that goes into your house will almost certainly come out eventually - and much of that will contain some personal information. To thwart this, consider purchasing an inexpensive home paper shredder from your local office supply store. Some perfectly adequate models are available in the $10 - $20 range. Shred anything that contains any sort of personal information.

• You. This one's simple. Don't give out personal information in person, over the phone, by mail or on the Internet unless you made the initial contact or you are absolutely certain you know the people to whom you are giving your information. An identity thief can pose as a representative of your bank, your credit card company, your internet service provider. And their stories can sound very plausible. Here's an example.

  If you are asked for any type of personal information, ask the caller for his/her name and telephone number and the organization he/she is representing. Then call the company using the customer assistance number the company provides with your account statement or bill (not the number you were given by the caller). Tell the customer service department about the call and the information you were asked to provide. If the call is legitimate, you'll be transferred to the correct department. If the call is not legitimate, you'll help alert the company that a fraud may be going on in the company's name.

• Anything else? Here are some further tips to help you protect yourself:
  • In your home, make sure you secure important documents with personal information in a locked box, drawer or (better yet) a safe. This is particularly true if you have roommates, or have outside help working in your house.
  • When regular bills don't show up when you know they should, don't just breathe a sigh of relief. Instead, follow up with the company. This may be a sign that someone has stolen pieces of your mail.
  • When you reorder personal checks from the bank, arrange to pick them up at the bank instead of having them sent to your home. You've heard the expression "giving someone a blank check"? If a thief gets your replacement checks, you're giving him a blank checkbook.
  • This bears repeating. Give out your Social Security number only when absolutely necessary. Some places simply must have that number (for example, your bank or your employer need that information to report tax information. Credit grantors need that information to obtain a credit report). However, sometimes it is collected merely as a convenience. Whenever you are asked for your Social Security number, find out why it is needed, how it is going to be used, how it is protected and what will happen if you don't provide it. A company may tell you that it can't do business with you unless you provide your number, but at least you will be making an informed choice.