Did you know Facebook, cell phones and new operating systems could all be used to steal your personal information?

Identity thieves are increasingly creative as changing technology allows them new tools to pilfer; but with a little awareness and some creativity of your own you can keep your private information out of sticky fingers.

New ID theft tactics

TMI on social networking sites Did you know that information posted on fan-sites helped a man steal Will Smith’s identity back in 2005? The sites had seemingly innocuous tidbits like his legal name and date of birth.

What you can do Learn from Big Willie: tidbits like nicknames and pets’ names (if you use them as part of your passwords), addresses, phone numbers and your date-of-birth shouldn’t be public on your Facebook or Myspace page. It’ll be hard going a whole birthday without practical strangers wishing you a good one, but it’s a small price to pay to reduce your risk of ID theft.

Zero Day attacks Commonly written “0-day,” these babies are hackers’ ways of showing the big software companies how much more awesome they are, even without girlfriends. What happens is new software (like an operating system) falls into to hands of a hacker with something to prove, and he or she finds and exploits vulnerabilities to wreak havoc— and sometimes steal information from users’ files. Older Web browsers also occasionally fall prey to 0-day type attacks.

What you can do Keeping your Web browser (Internet Explorer, Firefox, etc.) updated is helpful, as some of the browser-based attacks are launched in countries like China, where the newest versions are not common. It is also best to wait a few months to purchase a recently released operating system, such as the new Windows 7—which hasn’t had any reported 0-day attacks as of this writing. Why wait? Because when an attack reveals a weak spot, software engineers develop a patch to fix it, giving you a stronger product.

Cell phone camera snooping Those hi-def little cameras aren’t only handy for taking pouty profile pictures (more on Facebook later). Some identity thieves are using them to record credit card numbers and pin-pad action at restaurants and stores.

What you can do Get in the habit of leaving your card upside-down on the table when you’re waiting for the waiter to pick it up. At stores keep the numbers concealed as much as possible while you swipe, and do a quick glance around or cover the PIN pad while entering your PIN number.

Older ID theft tactics

Dumpster diving Tried and true, this method is still an effective way for thieves to find your private info. Why? Because many people have a mountain of documents and letters ready for shredding, but they never buy or use a shredder. Eventually it gets thrown in the garbage intact.

What you can do Use a shredder! You can find a crosscutter online for as little as $35. Or use my husband’s guy-friendly alternative: take out all the plastic cards and incinerate the paper on the grill. What needs to be destroyed? Any documents with your SSN or PIN numbers, account numbers, credit card offers, billing and account statements and ATM receipts.

Intercepting your mail/opening new accounts If someone intercepts a “pre-approved” credit offer or a paycheck from your mailbox, it’s fairly easy for them to follow through and accept the credit offer (often changing the address so you won’t receive statements) or cash the check.

What you can do Opt out of pre-approved offers. You can do this here or by calling 888-5OPTOUT. If they never get in your mail, they can’t be picked up by mail thieves. Freezing your credit score is also smart because even if someone has your SSN they won’t be able to obtain credit from most lenders. Check out this article to see if a security freeze is right for you.

You can cut more mail-theft risks by asking your employer to pay you through direct-deposit, so your checks never get “lost” in the mail.

Ten million Americans can’t be wrong (the number of US ID theft victims in 2008). Identity theft is big business; but with a little knowledge and caution it’s easy to keep your information safe. Shred away, my friend.