 TITLE: How Does Identity Theft Happen? CONTENT: Data Breaches\n-------------\nYou likely have countless online accounts with different banks, merchants and other companies. And while those companies do their best to protect your data, hackers sometimes still manage to get access to customer information in what's called a data breach.\nSince the companies are the target, you may feel like there's not much you can do. But one thing you can do is to be selective about what information you share. Avoid opening an online account unless it's necessary, and only do business with companies that value security and clearly spell out their security practices on their website. END