Identity Theft from CV Information

We have been asked by a number of clients about the risk of using on-line services in relation to identity theft.

The main issue that seems to concern people is that they are potentially putting a lot of private information into the public domain and how this can be used against them. In relation to your CV there is not a great deal to be worried about, provided you keep it to the same level of information that can be found on the electoral roll, namely:

Name – full name, though middle names are not essential.

Address – including postcode. The postcode is used by many of the on-line databases as a search reference point, so it is essential to put it on your CV.

Date of Birth – don’t try to hide your age, it’s generally counter-productive.

Don’t put your National Insurance number on there (we see this a lot from South Africans who have emigrated to the UK) or your mothers maiden name, or the name of your pet!

Another one to seriously avoid is putting your place of birth on your CV as this is frequently used as a security question by companies on the ‘phone and on-line.