Format Letter For Identity Theft: Fill & Download for Free

If it’s sensitive data, don’t trust any kind of formatting or zeroing out. Even if you do multiple pass Linux dd if=/dev/zero of=/dev/sda or some kind of Windows-based zero-ing software, there’s still a chance someone can recover. And definitely don’t just “quick format” the drive — that’s like erasing the table of contents and leaving all the other pages intact!What’s the only sure way? I pay a local guy who owns one of these to come onsite while I watch him destroy the hard drives.Inside are industrial-strength grinder teeth.Within 3 seconds, it turns into this.EDIT: Thanks to Hugh Nolan for showing me the 2009 SANS Digital Forensics and Incident Response Blog which explains how in modern hard drives, although it is statistically possible to recover a single bit of data with a 50% success rate using magnetic microscope, in practical terms, it’s unfruitful. Let me put it this way — a single letter like C is comprised of 8 bits. If you manage to recover 50% of those bits, it’s no longer the letter C.Here’s the original technique published in 1992 on how to recover erased data using a magnetic microscope to detect magnetic footprint left from wiped hard drive. http://www.ee.umd.edu/%7Erdgomez/TMag28_3141.pdf. Apparently this does not work so well anymore.I know you can use various wiping tools like DBAN to do a DOD 7-pass wipe. But it will take double-digit hours if not days to finish a single 4TB drive. Flaky hard drives also may not work in DBAN due to bad sectors triggering timeouts.All I’m saying is if time is money, and you are paranoid about identity theft, I’d still throw them all into the industrial grinder!

The job search process has been dramatically altered by the internet, for a large part because of the transformative nature of LinkedIn on recruitment practices.As a headhunter, I am on the receiving end of applicants using LinkedIn and traditional job portals. I have access to LinkedIn Recruiter, a VERY expensive tool that allows us headhunters to post LinkedIn job advertisements thus providing people like YOU the option to apply directly via LinkedIn.Similarly, my internal systems post my advertisements on every other type of job portal, like: Monster, CareerBuilder, Indeed, Simplyhired, and a myriad of other “job aggregator sites” as they’re called.Let’s talk about the pros and cons of each of these submission methods, so you can decide which way you want to go.#1. Applying through LinkedIn with your profile:What happens after you submit?At the receiving end of your submission, the person who posted the job (the job poster) will have most likely elected the automatic ALERT option so that they receive an email every time someone applies to their LinkedIn job advertisement (advert). The email body consists of bullets directly from your LinkedIn summary/job experience content.Your resume is usually also on that email as an attachment*. If you have a great resume that is RELEVANT, only then you’ll receive some type of communication from the job poster or their boss (phone or email or LinkedIn message). Check out my article on resume design for maximum effectiveness.If you’re not of interest, you will not hear back. You’ll have to chase the job poster for feedback. If you’re really passionate about the job, it doesn’t hurt to reach out directly to the job poster. If you don’t hear back after repeated attempts, again, you’re doing something wrong in terms of self-promotion and content/format/job experience and they are still, sadly, not interested.*If your resume is not attached for whatever reason, the job poster will still evaluate your LinkedIn profile because they PAID for the advert! They want to receive good applicants, but usually the people who apply are not a fit, so if you ARE of interest, you WILL hear back. Especially in Candidate-dry markets; recruiters are dying for the best candidates and stalking the market, thus if you’re a fit, you’ll definitely hear about it.PROS: The application process is easy and you can apply to multiple jobs with relatively little work. You don’t have to fill out complicated forms on various company sites, you can just simply attach your resume and press submit on the LinkedIn platform. The job poster will receive your resume directly in their inbox.Also, LinkedIn adverts DO expire (live for one month, renewable), so most likely the role you’re applying to on LinkedIn is relatively recent, and is probably still LIVE if it’s still posted or if the job poster is somewhat responsible and will keep tabs on their marketing channels. Again, these are expensive adverts, so most likely the jobs posted on LinkedIn are REAL, relatively recent, and actively responding to applicants deemed to pass the initial evaluation.CONS: If you don’t have a relevant, clear, and strategic LinkedIn profile, you’re dead in the water. What constitutes a good LinkedIn profile? You’ll have to request my answer so I can address this separately. :) Your LinkedIn profile and your general status in the industry will come into play here. Most likely, if you’re very experienced in the industry/job that you’re applying for, you’ll have mutual connections, groups, and keywords with the job poster.If you don’t have any mutual contacts, any relevant information, or TOO MUCH INFORMATION, that will count against you! If you’re applying for a finance job, and the job poster sees that your LinkedIn profile is filled with marketing, sales, accounting, operations, and some finance key words, you’re damaging the chances of obtaining an interview request because you’re over-marketing and diminishing your relevancy to the niche skill/job that they’re recruiting for. Other candidates with more relevance will be placed ahead of you in the roster.By trying to be a master of all, you’ll actually be viewed as a master of none!Remember: Less is more.#2. Applying with your resume to a job directly:What happens after you submit?Your resume will be lodged into the internet black hole. Hopefully the person on the receiving end is actually monitoring the applicants, which may be or may not be the case! People are busy: the hiring entity on the receiving end of your resume at the company could be an HR person who has just gone to vacation, or to an internal recruiter, who is handling 20 other roles, so who’s to say that either of them will actually catch your resume on the receiving end for that particular job posting?PROs: I really don’t see any pros to submit to companies’ websites these days or even other job portals like the ones I mentioned. Too little control and your information is too accessible for identity theft and variety of other issues.CONs: It’s a lot of work to submit directly - you have to fill out different forms for different companies/jobs, provide customized Cover Letters for each (that won’t be read anyways).SO WHAT’S THE BEST STRATEGY MOVING FORWARD?No matter what, recruiters/HR staff are accustomed now to using LinkedIn! Even the hiring manager who is responsible to oversee the new hire prefers to look up the candidate on LinkedIn before the phone interview!You should:#1. Make sure your LinkedIn profile is totally in line with your resume, so that you’re telling a congruent, consistent, and true story. People will be turned off by discrepancies or irrelevance. Make sure you have a tight marketing message that proves you are who they’re looking for.#2. Use LinkedIn to reach out to hiring mangers, recruiters, and ex-colleagues directly! Write to them! You can purchase inmails or even get free inmail trials or find their email address online. Just reach out directly, skip the line and the wait!Of course, there are lots of nuances and steps you’ll have to learn, but this is a starting point!Disclaimer: LinkedIn does not allow for affiliations, I declare that my company, Dandan Global, has no affiliation with LinkedIn in any way.

(This answer concerns the U.S. Social Security Administration and the cards they issue.)DO NOT CARRY your Social Security card in your wallet! Keep it in a safe place (at home, in a lock box, at a bank safe deposit box). DO NOT CARRY IT IN YOUR WALLET, because it could be easily stolen (or just seen by someone with ill intent). Also, do not laminate or put clear tape on your Social Security card, or that will invalidate it.The practical value of a Social Security card is it shows your Social Security number (SSN), which you should memorize. There are only a very few situations when you must show your actual card to government agencies.I might have to fill out my SSN on occasion for a checking account application or a job, but I rarely have to show the actual card. Social Security numbers are easily used for IDENTITY THEFT. If someone steals your SSN, your credit could suffer. Guard that number! Memorize it, but do not put it on anything unless absolutely required (e.g., banking documents, IRS tax forms).Where SSNs used to be commonBack in the (dinosaur) day, SSNs were routinely used as the default numbers for:Student ID numbers at my state university, and probably at other institutionsDriver’s license numbersPatient identification numbers at doctors’ and dentists’ officesMedicareIn the States, medical offices can no longer use your SSN for ID. If you have Medicare, the new Medicare numbers are completely different from the SSN, and the new Medicare number should be in their system, not your SSN.Format of new Medicare numbersFor example, if someone’s SSN was 073–20–1234, the old Medicare number would have been the nine numbers of the SSN plus a letter (e.g., 073–20–1234-A). So, even if a patient had been careful about not sharing his Social Security number, the SSN would be obvious to anyone just by looking at the Medicare number.In 2028, though, the U.S. government finally changed this. Now, a Medicare number is 11 characters (0000–000–0000), a random mix of letters and numbers and could look like this: MG4B–3A2-4Z1Y. (The truth is, memorizing and Medicare number is not easy, but might not be that necessary.)DO NOT CARRY YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY CARD AROUND!Because there is no obvious connection between a Medicare number and an SSN, it is fine to carry a Medicare card but not a Social Security card.Also see:Sarah Madden's answer to Can you get a Social Security number online?Sarah Madden's answer to How can I track down my Social Security card if it is lost?