2025 ShredSafe Event: AARP shares crucial tips to combat identity theft

Identity fraud continues to affect millions of Americans, with 40 million victims reporting $47 billion stolen in 2023, according to a recent AARP report.

Jeff Miller with the AARP Fraud Watch Network is sharing tips to help individuals better protect themselves.

Core Practices to Prevent Identity Theft

Miller said that there are some key habits that everyone can do to safeguard their personal information:

1. Use strong, unique passwords for each account.
2. Enable multi-factor authentication wherever possible.
3. Check your credit report regularly for suspicious activity.
4. Turn on automatic updates on all devices to patch security vulnerabilities.
5. Avoid engaging with unknown texts, emails, or phone calls, which are often used in scams.
6. Shred any documents containing sensitive information that are no longer needed.

Upcoming Shredding Event

To help the public dispose of documents securely, AARP, along with News On 6 and 92.9 the River, is sponsoring a shredding event.