Online safety is an issue for everyone, and the UK government sponsored site www.getsafeonline.org gives up-to-date advice on all aspects.
However, one issue of particular relevance to tutors is the risk of identity theft. According to a Get Safe Online report last week, a massive 1 in 5 (21%) of UK internet users have been the victim of online identity theft.
If you advertise your tutoring services on the internet, you need to take extra care that you’re not increasing that risk by posting sensitive data online, for example, by including your CV.
According to the Metropolitan Police, criminals need only three out of 15 key pieces of information to commit identity fraud, with the average CV containing eight pieces of information.
All of the information below, commonly found in CVs, can help the identity fraudster:-
- Full name
- Marital Status
- Place of Birth
- Driving Licence Status
- Number of dependents and ages
- Date of Birth
- Current Address
- Email address
- Phone numbers
- Employment History including referees and current employer
- Schools / educational establishments attended
- Personal information such as hobbies and interests
At The Tutor Pages, we minimize the risk of identity theft both by collecting minimal data from tutors during sign up, and restricting the amount of personal data displayed online. For example, tutors do not enter their date of birth or home address, and only enter the first half of their postcode. In addition, we do not display tutor email addresses online, and ask that tutors do not include their phone number(s) in their online profile.
The below is a cautionary tale:
Caroline Coats, a company director from Montpellier, was in Birmingham doing some Christmas shopping when she was arrested after visiting her bank to get some money out. In less than an hour she was in a cell and questioned by police through the night. Why? Because she had been the unwitting victim of internet fraud after posting her CV on a jobs website. (see www.denisatlas.co.uk/TrueStories.asp for the continuation).