What age group is the likeliest to be hit by identity theft? It's not mid-career folks at the peak of their earning power, as Clark himself had long thought.

A new study by Javelin Strategy and Research finds that the No. 1 target for identity theft is people aged 18-24. As a group, this digitally connected demo is too trusting and cavalier for its own good. They tend to put details of their life out on the web repeatedly with few safeguards. And they tend to move a lot and be in different career and educational settings, which makes tracking down a breach difficult.

Here's another interesting stat: On average, it takes an older person about a month and a half to figure out their identity has been stolen. Someone in the 18-24 age group, however, may go four and a half months before they discover it.

Do you know how much damage a criminal can do to you in four and a half months?! We're not talking about isolated instances here, either. Last year, there were over 11 million victims of identity theft. More disturbing is that fact that people often don't know how their identity was compromised, thus making it tough to seal the leaks.

Some of the most common ways people have their identity stolen include phishing scams and keylogger programs. With the keyloggers, people tend to lose an average of $5,000 from their personal accounts.

So if you're 18-24, know that you are a target. Be careful on social networking sites with how much info you post about yourself. If you bank online, monitor your accounts as often as possible. And be sure to balance your checkbook at least once a month. After 60 days, you lose your right to reclaim any money you've lost.

What's reasonable to comply with and what's not when it comes to the U.S. Census?

Last night, Clark went back and read the clause in the Constitution mandating a household headcount every 10 years and the amendment that was later added. Both have in the past helped inform the consumer champ's position that it is reasonable to reply with info about how many people live in your household. And though it's not Constitutionally mandated, you can also reply with how old each member of your household is.

There is nothing in the Constitution, however, about letting the Census probe into every last personal and financial detail of your life. Ten years ago, Clark got a long-form Census packet with intrusive questions. He filled in the first portion about the headcount and left everything else blank before sending it back in...and, no, he was not arrested!

Many people don't even want to reveal that much info. But again, it is reasonable to provide headcount; it goes back to our nation's Founding Fathers. Age is also reasonable to reply with.

This year, Clark got the ultra-short form and has completed it.

Why do some people get far more intrusive surveys than others? So that companies can have access to market research without having to pay for it!

Remember, the penny-pincher advises you to comply with only the Constitutional requirement of reporting head count in your household.

It's possible that if you get the long form and refuse to fill out anything beyond what's required that you'll get a home visit from a Census worker. Do not admit them into your home. Just maintain that you provided the info you are required to by law. Don't be hostile or threaten them with violence, either. They are just fellow citizens doing a job they were hired to do.

We've been getting a rash of calls about counterfeit checks and forgery cases resulting from the theft of outgoing mail.

If you pay bills by mailing checks the old-fashioned way, do not raise the red flag on your mailbox to let the carrier know you have outgoing mail. That's become a signal to criminals to raid your mailbox.

If a criminal gets hold of your outgoing checks, they can use special chemicals to wash the ink (while retaining your signature) and change the payee information or the amount to their liking.

Though it is an inconvenience, Clark recommends only dropping outgoing bills into a secured mailbox.

Special thanks to Detective Campbell who asked us to put out this warning about what's becoming a problem all around the country.

The popularity of social-networking sites has led to people feeling compelled to instantly update their location via Facebook or Twitter. But this practice makes you vulnerable to having your home burglarized while you're out and about.

A new website called PleaseRobMe.com has been created to showcase the danger of using certain apps like Foursquare, Brightkite and Google Buzz to broadcast your whereabouts.

The PleaseRobMe service was developed by an entrepreneur who had his home broken into and wanted to warn others. So often our circle of "friends" in cyberspace includes people that we've never met face-to-face. Do you really want them to know about your daily itinerary?

On a related note, remember to be sure to wait until you get home from vacation to post any updates or pictures online. Burglars will monitor their marks on social networks to figure out when nobody is going to be around.

A new Experian study finds that more than half of adults age 45 and over post enough info on their Facebook page to open themselves to identity theft.

Meanwhile, more than a third of people of any age haven't put any privacy settings in place on their Facebook accounts. For tips on how to adjust your settings for maximum privacy, see either the New York Times or ReadWriteWeb.com.

As a reminder, here's a quick rundown of information you shouldn't post on your Facebook page:

• Full home address
• Place of birth
• Phone numbers
• Educational background

And when it comes to passwords, be sure to use a strong password with both numbers and letters. PC Magazine recently compiled a list of the 10 most common passwords in the United States today. Do not use these on any of your accounts!

Finally, when you're on a trip, be sure to wait until you get home to post any updates or pictures online. Burglars will monitor their marks on social networks to figure out when nobody is going to be home.

Technology has become such an ally of free speech these days. Nowhere is that more apparent than in the fine line Google is walking in communist China.

The search monolith has stated it may leave the Chinese market because the government's rules on filtered searches are too strict. In addition, Google's Chinese operation has faced several cyber-attacks believed to have originated in the communist country.

Totalitarian societies fear the kind of free speech that the web enables. Iran, for example, has repeatedly shut off cell phone service and Internet access to prevent people from Tweeting, e-mailing and surfing the web during times of political unrest.

Historically, oppressive dictatorships have used media as way to propagandize their own citizens. Hitler, for example, used newsreels and film to win the hearts and minds of the German people.

What's different today is that dictators are undermined by technology instead of enhanced by it. It's exactly the opposite of George Orwell's 1984 vision, where technology was used to control people's minds.

Of course, it requires the ongoing courage of capitalists like Google to stand up and say no to China's control of information. Kudos to them for deciding not to chase the revenue in this case.

Interestingly, The New York Times reports that there was a news blackout in China itself pertaining to Google's threats to leave. Does that not tell you everything you need to know right there?!

Google is making it possible for people to log on and see what information the company has about them. It's part of new preemptive strike against the kinds of privacy concerns so many people have in the digital era.

To see your dossier, visit Google.com/Dashboard and log in. You can use your Gmail login to gain access, or even your passwords for other Google properties like YouTube and Blogger.

Once you've logged in, you'll see a page that lists information about you, including the following:

• Your viewing history on YouTube
• What credit cards you used on Google Checkout
• What blogs you have through Blogger
• What G-mail accounts you have
• And much, much more

In other news, you may have heard ads on the radio with celebrities explaining how Google is hiring people to work from home. Don't be fooled; this is a typical work-at-home scam that simply cashes in the cachet of Google's name.

Those who do get lured in by the scam are usually asked for a checking account number or a credit card number. Accounts are being hit with fees in the $1,000 range.

Have you ever locked yourself out of the house? Clark certainly has. Now new biometric deadbolts that read fingerprints can ensure it never has to happen again. Many of the big box hardware stores have these biometric locks for sale near the keys and traditional deadbolts.

Clark sees this as a safety no-brainer for women who routinely arrive home late at night by themselves. A fingerprint lock would prevent them from having to fumble around for keys in the dark.

Looking for a less high-tech option? Try a deadbolt that also has a combination lock built in. You can even give a trusted person their own unique code to gain entry.

As a bit of counterpoint to this whole discussion, Clark recently heard about a high-end Mercedes model in the Asian market that has a fingerprint ignition feature. Carjackers reportedly cut off the owner's finger to make off with the vehicle. Of course, that's something out of the realm of complete paranoia for most people in their everyday lives!

Clark has a little bit of egg on his face right now in light of his total enthusiasm for Google Voice. The celebrated free service is suffering some growing pains that you need to know about!

First, people have been upset that Google Voice is rationing who can come into the system. That means there is a waiting list for this no-fee service.

Second, some calls you try to place on Google Voice will be prohibited. The reasoning behind this has to do with an arcane topic known as competitive local exchange carriers.

Finally, one new hitch has emerged and it's a biggie. Certain voicemails handled by Google Voice were accidentially leaked online, making them available to anyone doing a simple Google search!

As our ClarkHoward.com users pointed out, however, these messages were typically marked as public by the user at the time of registration.

Still, this last gotcha has prompted a change in Google Voice policy. "We made a change to prevent these voicemails from being crawled so their content will not be indexed," a Google Voice spokesperson told PCMag.com.

Bank of America's mortgage lending unit has been involved in what may be criminal activity, erasing recorded phone calls that they had with members of Congress and both Democrat and Republican officials who got sweetheart deals through Countrywide.

The recorded phone calls were somehow magically erased when the tapes were subpoenaed. BOA is being tight-lipped, only releasing PR fluff statements about the whole episode.

But there's another angle to this story. BOA was apparently recording every phone call ever with every customer regarding Countrywide mortgages.

Meanwhile, callers have told Clark that they've tried to record BOA and been promptly shut down by the customer service representative on the other end of the line.

It's always wise to try to take a defensive position and record your side of the conversation. Technology makes it so easy these days. If you live in what's called a one-party permission state, you don't even have to tell the other person on the line that you're recording. If, however, you live in a two-party permission, you're simply required to say, "You're on a recorded line," before proceeding with the call. Determine what kind of state you live in.

Let's face it, companies are not recording you to serve you better or for "quality purposes." They're looking for something they can use against you if they need to. And did you know that some companies now pull a George Orwell and record your call even when they put you on hold?!

For years, Clark has told you how your prescription info has been sold into the marketplace. This info has included your medication, dosage, address, Social Security number and more.

Doctors have historically been monitored by pharmaceutical companies based on this info. If the docs were writing too many generic prescriptions, they would get visits from pharmaceutical reps to convince them to write name-brand scripts.

But now, buried in the zillions of pages of the federal stimulus law is a new provision making it illegal for your info to be trafficked in this way. This is the first-time ever that consumers are getting some protections.

What does it mean for you? Pharmacy benefits managers (PBMs) through your employer health coverage will no longer be allowed to sell your info.

Several of the nation's big drugstore chains that were involved in this data selling will be impacted too. A CVS spokeswoman told The New York Times that, "In very limited circumstances, we exchange aggregated, de-identified data with third parties to assist the health care community in understanding patient use of prescription medications with the goal of achieving better health outcomes."

In addition, you won't be receiving any more mailers from drugstore chains when it's time to refill a prescription. This now constitutes a privacy breach.

Would you be in favor of police using technology to automatically scan license plates whenever a car enters or leaves a town?

That's the situation the residents of a relatively isolated San Francisco suburb called Tiburon could be facing. Authorities want to install cameras to scan each tag and automatically alert them if a match is found with an outstanding warrant.

What a change from the old days when an officer had to radio a dispatcher with a tag number to run through a database!

Police say the technology should make identifying burglary suspects much easier. "We'll look for a plate that came and went," the town's police chief tells The San Francisco Chronicle. "That's going to give us a very short list to work on."

What do you think? Be sure to vote in our poll and let us know!

Think your browsing is being tracked too heavily on the web? Online advertising trade groups have released new guidelines that are aimed to give consumers a little breathing room.

No word yet if these "self-regulatory principles for online behavioral advertising," as they're called, will represent meaningful regulation or not.

The alternative is too frightening for the online advertising industry to consider. Just look at the European model, where there are very heavy-handed privacy regulations from the EU. In the United States, we're more laissez-faire about the whole issue…and the industry wants to keep it that way.

What's also going on behind the scenes is that online advertisers are trying to avoid federal regulation by proposing their own self-regulatory policies.

This is all about you having control of information and privacy. Clark is hopeful it can be done without government intervention. In reality though, the industry wouldn't be doing this at all if they weren't in fear of what President Obama will do to them if they don't act.

The Houston's restaurant chain is being sued in federal court by two ex-employees. Both were fired over comments in cyberspace they wrote about a manager in an invite-only forum.

Management gained access to a private MySpace forum where staffers were blowing off steam about their job after threatening to fire one employee if she didn't divulge her password.

We're not talking about the use of company computers here. This involved employees going online on their own time while using their own computers, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Not surprisingly, the dismissed employees allege a violation of their privacy in the lawsuit.

No matter the outcome of this case, this is one of those situations where everyone comes out looking bad. A respected restaurant chain has its name muddied in court because they couldn't handle the fact that the rank and file may not have liked one supervisor. And the fired employees have to find new work in a tough economy.

In the old days, when you spoke in anger, the fallout was usually limited to those within earshot. But comments in cyberspace have a certain permanence. What you post as a teenager may come back to haunt you.

That's why Clark advises people never to send an e-mail when they're angry. You should instead save it as a draft and then revisit it the next day before sending it off.

Want your say on this issue? Be sure to vote in our poll!

CVS has agreed to pay a $2.25 million settlement after the company's improper disposal of medical records was exposed by a sweeps week TV report.

WTHR-TV in Indianapolis did some dumpster dumping at CVS, Rite-Aid and Walgreen pharmacies as part of its report. What they discovered at CVS locations across the country was a pattern of people's names, addresses, prescription info, Social Security numbers and credit card numbers being dumped in the garbage for anyone to see. Talk about a major HIPAA violation!

The WTHR investigation was initially prompted by news of a grandmother in Bloomington, Indiana, who was robbed at her front door by a thief who found her address in a CVS dumpster.

The $2.25 million settlement followed a probe by two federal agencies and was spurred on by interest in WTHR's report. See, good things can come from sweeps week!

CVS didn't admit any wrongdoing in the settlement, but rather said they were settling "to avoid the time and expense of further legal proceedings." They also denied hearing of any harm happening to anyone as a result of their negligence.

As part of the settlement terms, CVS will now institute new policies when disposing of old medical records. Ever heard of a shredder? Then you won't have to worry about little old ladies getting assaulted by someone pulling their files out of a dumpster!

Clark has a story that will turn your stomach if you have a passport. The Washington Post reports that there was a crooked employee at the U.S. State Department who worked with a criminal ring to steal personal info from passports.

What kind of info is available in a passport record? Basically everything that a criminal could want to steal your identity and open false lines of credit. That includes Social Security number, physical description, names and places of birth of your parents, etc.

The D.C. police stumbled onto this ring back in March when they stopped a 24 year old smoking marijuana in a car. They had probable cause to search the vehicle and found passport applications, multiple credit cards and more. It was the tip of the iceberg of cracking this ring that potentially had access to the records of up to 192 million Americans who have passports.

The State Department is now sending letters to the several hundred people who actually did have their identities breached, and they're offering free credit monitoring for a year. But they refuse to talk to the media on record about this employee breach.

So what can you do? There's only one imperfect remedy -- but it works: Do a credit freeze. See Clark's guide to credit freezes for detailed info.

When was the last time you got a notice in the mail from your bank that began, "We value your privacy…"? These privacy policies are typically printed in mice type and written in legalese. They explain all the harm that the bank will visit on you -- by selling your private information -- as part of their normal course of business. But ING Direct is reversing this trend. Their privacy policy explains in plain English that you'll have to opt in to their information-sharing program if you want them to share your info. Meanwhile, if you tell the average bank not to share your info, they're still allowed to do so with select "marketing partners." Clark thinks ultimately there's more money to be made from being honest to your customers than in taking advantage of them.

Clark has long advised his listeners to be careful of employers spying on e-mails, text messages, instant messages and more. Now a new decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals rules that employers can only spy if the info is stored on one of their servers. If the info is hosted by a third party offsite somewhere, they don't have the legal right to snoop under this latest decision.

Employers will likely have new hires sign paperwork waiving their rights to electronic privacy to get around the decision. Existing employees may be asked to sign the same paperwork.

The reality is that most employers have keylogger programs and use artificial intelligence to look for keywords related to corporate espionage, sexual harassment or something else that could harm their bottom line. They're not usually spying to be nosy, though it all has a real creep-out factor to it.

Clark recalls when he once worked at a radio station where an employee was looking for another job and had been updating her resume on her work computer. When she was found out, she was called in and fired on the spot.

So be careful what you do at work. If you're working on equipment issued by your employer -- be it a PC, a laptop or a cell phone -- just be safe and assume they can have prying eyes.

Behavioral targeting for ads is all the rage these days among both online and traditional advertisers. When you're surfing around on your computer, a user profile can be easily built as you're tracked from site to site using cookies. Based on that profile, you can then be fed targeted ads.

The Washington Post reports that one marketer has fine-tuned this process to the point that they were able to identify 40,000 brides-to-be based on their visits to sites that had nothing to do with getting married. Of course, the surfers were then served ads related to their coming nuptials.

The feds are trying to decide if these practices violate your privacy. The ad agencies and advertisers obviously don't want you to have anonymity on the web.

The cable TV industry, meanwhile, has a new $150 million initiative in the works called Project Canoe. The goal of Project Canoe is to come up with ways to feed targeted commercials to your TV based on your show preferences. So the ad spots you'll see may be completely different than the ones your neighbor sees. The hope is that you won't TiVo past the ads because you'll actually be interested in them.

Clark believes there's a serious creep-out factor here! What do you think?

Clark often wishes he had a dollar for every time someone asked him about ZabaSearch.com, the website where you can search public records to locate a person. The info on the site is not always accurate or up to date, and Clark compares using ZabaSearch.com to being a private investigator tracking down leads.

Case in point: When executive producer Christa searched her name, she got a bunch of old addresses and also some listings for a woman who shares the same moniker in San Francisco.

Now ZabaSearch.com has spawned several imitators such as Wink.com and Spock.com. Clark isn't sharing this info to make you paranoid; he just wants you to be informed about the public info that may be out there about you.

Best Buy's Geek Squad is accused of spying on customers by digging through the hard drives of computers brought in for repair. This is not exactly a case of ID theft; at least one Geek Squad employee has fessed up to copying a woman's personal nude photos from her computer.

The message here is that you shouldn't be careless with your own info. This is especially important for teens that use popular social-networking sites like MySpace and Facebook. Members of those sites usually list personal info -- date of birth, city and other specific identifiers -- that can greatly aid ID thieves.

Politicians have become particularly savvy at using the social-networking sites. Obama has done a great job reaching out to first-time voters. They're invited to join his MySpace page as virtual "friends." The politicians, of course, are ultimately seeking campaign money -- a more legitimate desire than an ID thief who also wants money but for a different reason.

If you're a parent, do you know if your child has a MySpace or Facebook page? Do you know who their virtual "friends" are or have any idea about what's on their page? One requirement should be that they make you one of their friends. You've got to know who they're virtually interacting with for their own good.

The latest Internet Security Threat Report shows that the value of stolen info has declined as the crime of ID theft spikes. Who knew that supply and demand even drove prices in the criminal underworld?!

A stolen credit card number now nets a measly 40 cents! That sum used to be at least several dollars higher. Your bank account number now goes for about $10. And get this -- your entire identity (credit card number, Social Security number, name, address and date of birth) now goes for just $2! Stolen info is that prevalent; in just the first 90 days of 2008, more than 8 million people had their data breached.

Business owners face an added burden when it comes to certain kinds of ID theft. Under the Uniform Commercial Code, they may be held partly or totally responsible if their own credit card or business checking account number is used for phony charges. Consumers would be protected under the same circumstances, but not so with businesses. So it's imperative to keep your check book locked up at the office if you're a business owner.

For consumers, be sure to monitor your credit card statements closely. You have 60 days to dispute any fraudulent charges. And consider freezing your credit. It's the best preventative medicine you can take.

Both sides of the aisle are advocating the idea of a gas tax holiday this summer. Yet Clark thinks this is one of the craziest economic ideas he's heard recently. We're all hurting as we watch the dollars fly and the gallons crawl at the pump. But the gas tax holiday is a recipe for financial disaster. It would increase demand and ultimately drive up prices.

Brazil is one country that's made some smart decisions in the energy realm. The South American nation was even more dependent on foreign oil than we were during the last energy crisis in 1979. So they embarked on a program of energy independence using sugar. Our Brazilian allies now provide for 100% of their energy needs and can export additional sugar as well.

Sugar produces a fuel that's more efficient than the corn-based ethanol we use. So why aren't we getting Brazil's exports? Domestic sugar producers have gotten Congress to put up trade barriers to keep it out of the marketplace. Meanwhile, our farmers have turned to growing their corn crop for fuel use, not for food. That, of course, further drives up the price of food!

We continue to use foreign oil from those who want to destroy us, instead of using sugar from our allies in Brazil. It makes no sense to Clark.

When was the last time you got a notice in the mail from your bank that began, "We value your privacy…"? These privacy policies are typically printed in mice type and written in legalese. They explain all the harm that the bank will visit on you -- by selling your private information -- as part of their normal course of business. But ING Direct is reversing this trend. Their privacy policy explains in plain English that you'll have to opt in to their information-sharing program if you want them to share your info. Meanwhile, if you tell the average bank not to share your info, they're still allowed to do so with select "marketing partners." Clark thinks ultimately there's more money to be made from being honest to your customers than in taking advantage of them.

Following the last major security breach of veteran info, Congress ordered all government agencies to have procedures in place to protect your info. Now the Government Accountability Office -- the investigative arm of Congress -- has found that only 2 out of 24 agencies they checked had implemented any new procedures. It's not just the feds not securing your info; most local governments and court systems also have it unsecured. Isn't it ironic that corporate America is actually further along in protecting you than government? That's not saying much considering how lousy of a job corporate America is doing! So what's the problem? Simple -- it's not anyone's primary mission in either of those sectors to secure your info. It's like rearranging a sock drawer -- will you ever get around to that? The only cop on the beat is you. The weapon of choice is a credit freeze. There's a new sheriff in town. You just have to choose to put on the badge.

RIP-OFF ALERT: The Berkeley Center for Law and Technology analyzed corporate America to see which companies have the highest incidence of ID theft. The No. 1 company? Bank of America. BoA is the nation's second largest bank. (If you look at the numbers based on total customer base, BoA then actually comes in second behind HSBC). AT&T occupies the second slot, followed by Sprint (No. 3), JPMorgan Chase (No. 4) and Capital One (No. 5). Think about it: 3 of the first 5 are banks, which is understandable. But why are two phone companies way up there? The reason is because they do a credit check when you apply for phone service, and open yourself up as a potential target when they get your info. In the No. 6 spot, we have Citibank. As the nation's largest bank, Citibank has one-third less incidences of ID theft than the smaller BoA! Verizon, American Express, Washington Mutual and Wells-Fargo all round out the top ten. View the complete list online at the Berkeley site.

Now the inevitable question: Why do these institutions have high rates of ID theft? Clark speculates that it must have to do with the way they internally handle your information. Interestingly, the bank with the lowest incidence of ID theft is ING Direct. You would think they'd be up at the top of the list since they're Internet only. But being a newer bank, they've been dealing with outsmarting ID thieves since they launched. It's much tougher for a legacy financial institution to retroactively patch good protection into systems that were built decades ago. ID theft has not grown significantly -- it still happens to about 10 million people a year -- but it's still a major issue. Finally, from the "no they didn't!" category, the New York City Department of Finance sent tax forms to 1000s that showed people's Social Security numbers through the envelope. C'mon people, this is 2008! Get with the program.

Fortune magazine has discovered that Yahoo! and Gmail are good for their promise that your e-mail account and your contacts are your private property. Meanwhile, MSN's HotMail and MSN Messenger take the opposite position. They argue that anything you do online belongs to them, including your contacts list. So you may want to consider firing MSN for e-mail and IM purposes. On a related note, your employer owns everything if you use Outlook at work. So Clark says that you obviously shouldn't use your work account to job-hunt or harsh on the boss! Finally, beware of unsolicited Valentine's Day e-cards that may contain viruses that turn your computer into a bot. If you don't know the sender, do not open that e-card.

Clark is one man who's used to being on camera -- whether it's during the course of his TV work or when he's in the studio for his radio show. Camera technology has become so cheap that there's an eye in the sky almost everywhere you look. In fact, the studio where Clark works even has spy cameras hidden in fake air vents! The days of cameras just being in retail stores to combat shrinkage are over. Small businesses can now buy inexpensive camera systems online. The Dallas Morning News reports that franchise owners use them to monitor activity remotely over the Internet. This is great for employers, but many folks are uncomfortable about giving up their privacy. Some New York taxi drivers recently went on strike because they objected to having to put GPS systems in their vehicles so riders could track their route. Meanwhile, truck drivers are now spied on in real-time by their employers via camera. England is one nation that spies on its citizens several times a day on public roads. The benefit to this was seen after the recent U.K. terror attacks. Police were able to instantly generate pictures thanks to all the camera technology. There's a fine line here between the invasion of individual privacy and the potential benefit for capitalism, according to Clark.

There's been an e-mail flying around the country again about the Do Not Call list and how cell phone users are supposedly about to have their names sold to marketers. Law enforcement has denied that this is true and Clark too wants to emphasize this is a false rumor. When it comes to the National Do Not Call Registry, you want to register your home phone number. Clark also thinks you should register your business number -- even though it's discouraged. That way you'll have full protection from solicitors. But the bogus e-mail that's been circulating shows that more and more people use their cell phones as their sole point of contact. This is a bad idea because marketers can sell it again and again if they get hold of it. If your only phone is your cell and you want to avoid annoying solicitation calls, try signing up at GrandCentral.com where you can get a "fake" home number. Special kudos to one listener who pointed out that GrandCentral is still being tested. At this point you must be invited to join by someone who already has an account. All others will be wait-listed until the service officially launches.

If you're a parent, do you know where your kids go when they're online? Are you aware that predators often lurk on popular social-networking sites like Facebook and MySpace. Contrary to popular belief, online predators don't just target teenage girls. Facebook and MySpace are social interaction hubs for both girls and boys. Kids set up their own pages and invite people they've never met to become their online friends. The real danger comes when people with bad intentions want to meet your child in person. Facebook previously shrugged its shoulders about the predator problem, but the company has now reached a deal with the Attorney General of New York to institute new security practices. MySpace likely will follow suit with its own similar initiatives. The truth is that most parents don't know what their kids are up to on the Internet. As a parent, this frightens Clark. His teenager didn't have a computer in her room until she was 16. But even then Clark and his wife monitored their daughter's computer use. Parents have a right to be nosey and know what kids are up to when they live at home. Clark advises parents to not sneak behind their kids' backs -- instead, simply tell them that you are a nosey parent and will be monitoring them online. You may decide altogether that your children won't be allowed to have a presence on social-networking sites. The choice is up to you. Meanwhile, MySpace has struck a partnership with Skype and will soon offer users free Internet phone services.

A few weeks ago Clark spoke about new credit freeze laws for non-victims of ID theft. The new rules have been or are being adopted by all three major credit bureaus. A credit freeze is the most effective strategy to shut down ID theft. Freezes had been free to victims of ID theft, but previously not all non-victims had access to them. Clark froze his credit with TransUnion yesterday -- the first day he was eligible to do so. He had to write a letter providing his name, address and Social Security number, plus a copy of his driver's license. Then he also had to provide a credit card number to pay a $10 freeze fee. Some people may feel uncomfortable giving up all that information, but Clark looks at it as a calculated risk that's very smart. The cost of not doing a freeze and having your identity stolen can be disastrous. Experian will allow credit freezes beginning Nov. 1, while Equifax still has not announced a start date yet. What does a credit freeze mean for Clark's life -- or yours? It means that he must pay $10 per bureau when he wants to thaw his records to apply for future credit. If that sounds costly to you, compare this cost to the thousands of dollars and untold hours you'd have to spend restoring your good name and credit following an ID theft.

Do you hate legal mumbo-jumbo? Well, consumer reporter David Lazarus recently read through Time Warner's entire 3,000 word privacy policy and terms of service. What he discovered is that Time Warner reserves the right to track the Internet habits of its high-speed customers. This info includes what websites you visit, how long you spend on them and what e-commerce purchases you make. They can also read your personal e-mails, according to the terms of service. Time Warner is also allowed to disclose personally identifiable info about its customers to advertisers, direct mail operations and telemarketers for a price. A company spokesperson claims they're not doing all this just yet, but Clark wonders why Time Warner is even allowed to reserve the right to totally invade your privacy. And it's not only Time Warner that has these kinds of policies -- AT&T tracks very similar info on its customers and records their TV viewings habits. While it's never good to look reflexively to Washington for a solution, Clark believes in this case we need an ironclad privacy policy from Congress to protect the privacy of your viewing and surfing. After all, would the CEOs of Time Warner and AT&T -- or those on Capitol Hill -- like it if the public saw every one of their e-mails?

The Do Not Call list initially worked beautifully. But the number of complaints about junk calls have been skyrocketing lately. Business Week reports that’s because companies have found a loophole in the law. This method is totally legitimate. Basically, in the fine print of sweepstakes entries you agree to receive junk phone calls. The FTC agrees that if you sign, then you waive your right not to be called. This whole phenomenon reminds Clark of a TV report he did years ago when he set up a car in a mall with a sign encouraging people to enter to win the car. Hundreds of people entered and gave sensitive personal information. The entry form explained clearly -- not in mice-type -- that people were entering for nothing, there was actually no prize and the amount of info they gave would be enough for an ID thief to work with. Clark was hidden down a corridor and would ask people after they signed up if they knew what they did. Almost everyone just thought they were entering for the free car. But one man ran back to the car display and tore open the entry box trying to get his entry form back. Sometime we all let our guard down and give too much info. So beware of businesses trying to pierce your privacy with sweepstakes entry forms.

Earlier this week, Clark told you about a security breach at Monster.com where hackers stole the names, addresses, phone numbers and e-mail addresses of 1.3 million people. There have been so many breaches over the years that we're almost numb to news about them. But now there's reason to believe that the Monster breach could affect more than just a million people. Nobody knows the exact number -- it's just larger than previously thought. So if you've ever posted your information on Monster.com, you need to be aware that criminals are calling people up and pretending to be potential employers or banks to get additional personal information. Once they get your additional info, they have all they need to take your identity or empty your bank account. You should only divulge sensitive information in person at a potential place of employment or a bank. The web is too anonymous and dangerous of a place to share your info via e-mail.

People tend to think that e-mail at work is private. But Clark recently read about a company that uses software to temporarily detain every e-mail leaving its network. The outgoing messages are reviewed by an artificial-intelligence program during the hold time. The program looks for keywords -- such as a competitor's name -- and flags suspicious e-mails for review by an actual person. What if you use third-party e-mail accounts like Yahoo! or Gmail at work? You still don't have any privacy rights if you access them through your employer's network. So make sure you're not sending anything that could get you in trouble. Speaking of compromised e-mail security, have you heard about the Spirit Airlines CEO who received a customer complaint forwarded to him internally by a colleague? Instead of just replying directly to the colleague, the CEO hit "reply all" and sent a curt reply back to the already disgruntled customer and others. The gist of the reply was that the airline didn't owe the customer anything for his troubles and that he would be back again when the airline saves him a penny. Clark thinks people should start treating e-mail like they would a party line or message board. Know that what you e-mail can be seen by unintended people. Meanwhile, Yahoo! has launched some new technology that combines IM, text messaging and e-mail capabilities into one. So for example if you get an e-mail, you can respond to the sender via text or IM; if you get a text, you can respond by e-mail or IM and so on. This is great for people like Clark who use all three platforms regularly.

Job seekers who entered their information in the Monster.com database may be at risk of identity theft following a massive security breach at the company. Identity thieves managed to steal the names, addresses, phone numbers and e-mail addresses of 1.3 million people. So beware if someone claiming to be an employer calls or e-mails asking to screen you as a potential employee. If they're an identity thief targeting you, they may ask you to divulge your social security number, mother's maiden name or place of birth. These are some of the remaining key pieces of info they'd need to steal your identity. If you think you've already been targeted or may be in the future, you're best option is to do a credit freeze. Consumersunion.org offers a comprehensive list of states that have credit freeze laws on the books. If you're already a victim, it's free to do a credit freeze. But you may have to pay some nuisance fees if you just want to do a freeze as a preventative measure. Right now 10 million people have their identity stolen each year. So why is there no national credit freeze law? The problem is that Congress is in cahoots with bank lobbyists who want to repel all freeze laws -- even those on the state level. We'll keep you posted...

You may have heard about the government spying on our phone records, after three phone companies agreed to serve up our information on a silver platter. Only Quest refused to go along with the government’s fishing expedition. We hear “offers” for this all the time. When you go to a retail store, you’ve probably heard the clerk ask if you want to save money. All you have to do is register with the company and let them track you. You are then offered various sales depending on what you buy. But everywhere you turn, we’re giving up private information. Sometimes it’s without our consent, but many times we give out our own information by choice. So, be aware that you’re being tracked and it could come back to bite you if you’re not careful.

If you work on a computer at the office and have a company e-mail account, what are the chances your employer is spying on you? More than one-third of large companies now read every e-mail received and sent by employees. In fact, companies are hiring people whose sole job duty is to read other workers' e-mails. Half of companies use software AND human beings to scan e-mails. So, pretty much anything in your e-mail account is fair game. That also goes for your Hotmail, Yahoo and G-mail accounts, if you use them at work. When you are on an employer’s property and are using the employer’s equipment, they have the right to spy on you. It also goes for Blackberry devices that are technically company property. Your privacy extends to your home computer and the e-mail you send and receive there. So, don’t send obscene jokes or use profane language in e-mails. Employers look for “cuss” words as grounds for dismissal.

Did you know that it’s dangerous to carry your social security number on your person? Many states used to publish a SS# as a driver’s license number, which was quite dangerous. You should change your license if that’s the case. Private health insurance companies also used to list the number on your insurance card. Thankfully, that doesn’t happen anymore since California got a law passed preventing that. But one organization – Medicare – refuses to take social security numbers off people’s Medicare cards. No, it won’t be easy or cheap to do. But other organizations have managed to get it done. Identity thieves could have a field day with this, yet Medicare is too arrogant to do anything about it. One Congressman has proposed a bill that would prevent the number from appearing on cards in the future. It’s in the House right now, and we’ll let you know what happens. In the meantime, protect yourself and NEVER fill out the line asking for your SS# when you visit the doctor. Congress needs to step in and remove SS#’s as a tracking feature. It would prevent so much ID theft.

This year has been a flashpoint in the history of identity theft. Not only were there a record number of identities stolen, with the number increasing each month. But there were also huge security breaches at Choicepoint, Bank of America and many other huge companies. These companies carelessly leaked or sold customers’ financial information to criminals, causing a surge in ID theft. One law in California has been the saving grace in this catastrophe, and it was the brainchild of Sen. Deborah Bowen. Today, Clark talked to Bowen about the law, which has changed the focus of identity theft across the country. The beauty of the law is that it requires companies to notify customers when a breech has occurred. Before that, companies in California just kept it a secret and charges would all of a sudden show up on your credit card bills and credit reports. She talked about the fact that people deserved “fair warning” when something like this happened to them. And Clark hopes it takes shape in all other states soon!

Do you have an unpublished number, yet somehow people are able to get in touch with you? Have you wondered how? Well, there are Web sites out there that publish this information and much more. One of the sites is zabasearch.com. The idea is to hook people who are searching for someone and then get them to buy background information on the folks they are investigating. Unfortunately, it also provides an avenue for identity thieves. The information they’ve compiled comes from state, county and federal governments, and it can be used for questionable purposes. Clark doesn’t like this idea at all!

Have you heard of the payroll service ADP? It’s the largest payroll service in the country, and it’s been that way for a while. The company is supposed to protect our data very closely. But, according to recent news, ADP sent postcards to some workers with Social Security numbers displayed prominently on the front of the cards. Some of the postcards simply disappeared, so there is no telling who has a hold of that information. In other news, Lexis-Nexus has also had a security breach that it turns out now happened to be four times as large as once reported. These breaches in security happen so often that people become numb to them. It’s ridiculous, and it’s happened every time because these companies are careless with the databases and sensitive information they have about us. Clark thinks it’s time that the states adopt the laws that have already been instituted in California and Texas. In those states, consumers have control over their information and over how companies can use it. But the credit bureaus and banks are fighting these initiatives because they will lose money if people can “freeze” their accounts. Right now, consumers are spectators in all of this. We watch what happens with our names and information. We need more power and the companies need to be held accountable.

Have you heard of RFID or Radio Frequency Identification? These are little transmitters that can go on inventory, follow travelers or be attached to children. When RFID first came out, privacy advocates were very worried about this technology. Clark didn’t think it would get out of hand. But he’s eating crow now because apparently a California school has been testing the use of RFID to track students. Teachers were having trouble figuring out which 7th and 8th graders were truants and which were legitimately missing school. The idea was that students would wear an RFID tag around their necks. But parents got very upset, and Clark agrees that this has become too obtrusive. Granted there are some good uses of RFID. For example, preventing shoplifting and aiding in the efficiency at checkout counters. But having RFID tags in the workplace and requiring people to wear them is too much.

The CEO of Boeing was recently fired after word spread of his affair with a woman in the office. An affair would not normally be a firing offense. But Harry Stonecipher apparently sent some very graphic e-mails to the woman, and other people saw them. You have to be careful what you send to people at work, whether it’s in a letter, e-mail or instant message. They can all be traced and used against you professionally. Be careful!

A real hot button with Clark has been e-mail messages and privacy. There was a very controversial court ruling that determined that our e-mail messages are not private. Basically, the decision determined that whoever owns the server that delivers or captures your e-mail messages can read your mail. E-mail is subject to less privacy than any other form of correspondence. For example, if someone opens a letter in your mailbox, it’s a violation of federal law. And, if someone wants to listen to your phone calls, a wire tap order is required. But e-mail is completely accessible legally to anyone or any company where the e-mail stops along the way. Hopefully, Congress will change this. But in the meantime, remember to never send or receive e-mail at work that could be embarrassing to you or could cost you your job. Your employer is free to read your e-mail whenever he or she wants because the computer at work belongs to the company. And never, ever look at adult content sites at work. Be smart about this stuff and you won’t have anything to worry about.

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In other privacy news, California has joined North Dakota in the fight against the banking industry’s pitiful privacy practices. In those two states, banks have to get written permission to share your information. In the other 48 states, the banking industry is free to share your information with anyone who pays them for it. Also remember to check your credit card statements and bank statements line-by-line because you never know who has a hold of your information and is charging you phony fees.

A few days ago, Clark talked about a story in the Baltimore Sun that claimed cell phone companies were planning to publish a directory containing customers’ cell phone numbers. The Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association (CTIA) spoke on behalf of all cell phone companies again and added that none of the participating carriers will list consumers' numbers unless the consumer asks to be included. CTIA Spokesman Travis Larson said the WDA has always been an "opt in" program, despite what the Sun said. He also said that companies are not planning to charge consumers to opt out. There will be a directory; it's called the WDA or Wireless Directory Assistance. But the customer has full control of whether or not they want to be listed. Let’s hope it happens as Larson says. We'll keep you posted.

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Larson also responded to Clark's question about spam text messages over our cell phones. He said people should report the message to their provider. He said it should not charge you for reporting it or for the e-mail message itself. So, call and get it taken off your bill.

You’ve probably heard callers on the show who have had strange charges show up on credit card statement or who have had money vanish mysteriously out of their checking accounts. The reason starts in the late ‘90s when Congress bought into an argument from banks, stock brokerages and insurance companies that they would be much more efficient if they were able to share information. It was a high-minded purpose they offered, but it was baloney. And credit card operators and banks instead entered into marketing alliances with evil characters who put all kinds of weird charges on your credit cards for bogus “membership programs” and “protection plans.” They tend to show up on your card statement in the form of small amounts - $3 to $5 - each month. Now, Clark tends to paint every bank as being in business with scums who sell your information at the drop of a hat. But there are those rare companies that look out for their customers. The Consumer Federation of California Education Foundation recently rated major financial institutions on how they view privacy and how they protect it. Only one company got an “A+” - Pacific Life Insurance. And there was only one “A” in the group – eLoan. Companies that got an “A-“ include U.S. Bank, First Republic Bank, State Farm insurance, 20th Century Insurance and Fireman’s Fund Insurance. What about the “F’s”. Well, there are lots. Bank One, Providian, J.P. Morgan, GE Capital and Salomon Smith Barney are just a few of them. As for “D’s”, Citibank, Washington Mutual, Household International, Capital One and MBNA are in that group. The “A” companies are there to protect you and your privacy. Organizations that get “D’s” and “F’s” will sell your personal information to anyone to make as much money as possible off of you. So, you know where to shop and where not to shop. Overall in the ratings, credit card issuers got the lowest grade of “D.” Stockbrokers got an overall grade of “C-.” Banks got a “C” and insurance companies and credit unions got a “B-.” The best overall grade of “A-“ went to online financial institutions.