By now we’ve all heard of identity theft. In most of the cases that have made it to the news, it’s been “personal” identity theft where one person use’s or takes control of another person’s identity to take money from bank accounts, get credits cards, and in general buy stuff.
It’s fair to say that this has become so common that almost anyone you talk to has either experienced or knows someone who has.
There have been movies made on the topic – the most recent one called, “Identity Theft” starring Justin Bateman and Melissa McCarthy where Melissa’s character steals the identity of Justin’s character.
Prior to that, in 2004 a more serious movie with the same name hit the screens. It was based on a true story where the victim eventually provided testimony on Capitol Hill which lead to the signing of bill HR 1731 for tougher penalties against identity theft.
It is usually devastating to the person targeted in more ways than one. Obviously the intrusion into one’s life is similar to a physical break-in to their home. But in this case, it can be even more frustrating and disturbing because there isn’t any physical trace they can see or feel – it’s like the invisible man (or woman) is taking advantage of them.
That’s the situation individuals have to go through, but for a business owner it can also be just as devastating to have your company’s identity taken or misused. There are a variety of ways this can be done and with your business reputation at stake, you need to be aware of the potential problems it can cause for you.
A clear example is when someone creates fake posts or fake articles appearing to come from you or your business. You might think this type of activity is really just slander and you could be right depending on the content. But if it’s appearing to come from you it is identity theft pure and simple – not just slander, if the latter applies.
While this type of content could originate from an unhappy customer or ex-employee, it could also come from a competitor trying to make you look bad. And while some may believe that any press is good press, we suggest that you do what you can to avoid negative press.
While you can’t control everything that is said or even claimed about you or your business by others, you can use a program like Reputation Maximization to create a contingency plan with a multifaceted system to prevent and minimize damage from such a situation.
You should be careful in how you deal with certain situations and keep the types and severity of those situations separate. We don’t recommend that you go as far as some businesses owners. Taking too extreme an action can dig the hole you might think you are in even deeper.
We’ve talk about how one business sued a customer for posting a bad review and when you consider that type of action you want to not just talk to a lawyer who knows online law, but also think about the cause and effect of taking an extreme action.
If you need your reputation to not just protect you before and during, but also after an attack, you need Reputation Maximization. We’re here to help you with any questions so make contact and let’s schedule a call today.