"They pretended they were me, calling up, making phone calls with my name, using my credit card, my information," said Lawrence.
Lawrence, like more than a million others in the last year, had his identity stolen while shopping online.
"They started out small, in $15, $25 increments, and they slowly increased," said Lawrence. "I tallied it up to somewhere close to $25,000."
/*Consumer Reports*/ cautions that you should only shop at sites you trust. It is also essential to protect your computer from spyware, viruses and spam by installing security software.
Consumer Reports tested security suites costing between $50 and $90. But experts found free security software that is on par with the best.
Consumer Reports recommends:
- /*AntiVir*/ from free-av.com to fight viruses
- /*Windows Defender*/ from microsoft.com. to prevent spyware
- /*SPAMfighter Standard*/ from spamfighter.com to fight spam
You also want to protect against /*phishing*/. E-mails may look like they come from banks and other companies, but are actually lures to gain access to your accounts.
"Never click on links in e-mails that go to banks or other sites that have your personal information," said Dean Gallea, Consumer Reports.
Gallea says you should type the company's Web address into your browser. For more protection, Consumer Reports recommends downloading free anti-phishing software, such as the /*McAfee SiteAdvisor*/, which warns when you go to a dangerous site.
Consumer Reports says /*Apple computers*/ are much less likely to be attacked by viruses and spyware. However, since Macs can transmit infected files to /*Windows PCs*/, even within a home network, Consumer Reports recommends installing an antivirus program, such as /*Norton AntiVirus*/ 11 for Mac, which costs $50.
- Link: Guide to online security
- Link: AntiVir
- Link: SPAMfighter
- Link: Windows Defender
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