Identity theft is a big issue, and every single person is at risk. Last year’s Equifax hack showed just how easy it is for criminals to gain access to personal information en masse.

With the ever-increasing number of corporate data breaches, identity theft can happen to anyone at any time – even after they die. But some people are more likely than others to become victims of this devastating crime.

For example, when you experience a major life event that requires filing official paperwork – buying or selling real estate, marriage, divorce, the birth of a child, starting new job, etc. –  your sensitive personal information gets entered into all kinds of databases.  This gives hackers more opportunities to find an access point and steal your identity.

Microsoft recently reported that tech support scams are up 24 percent since last year. The tech giant received 153,000 reports of customers encountering or falling for a fraud attempt, with 1 in 10 actually losing money from those scams. Microsoft customers paid an estimated $3 to $6 million to criminals – all because they didn’t know how to spot a hoax.

Earlier this month, hundreds of workers in Mumbai were investigated and dozens arrested for one of India’s largest scams. Targeting thousands of US citizens, the call center workers posed as IRS officials “in order to steal tens of millions of dollars, Indian police have said.” With a trained American accent, employees would trick American citizens into thinking they had defaulted on taxes and “were facing prosecution by the IRS.”