With all the county and public records available on the Internet, it's easier than you think for someone to pretend they are you. Your home address is a public record. It's probably online in your county tax assessor's records. Your social security number is for sale online. And that's just the start.

How do you protect yourself? Here's how:

1. Know what is available.
See what someone can find out about you. Start by typing your name into some search sites, like Google. Yahoo has a people search area.

If your name and home address is in your local phone book, it's online. If your e-mail address is posted at a people search area, change your address. Unfortunately, just because you ask doesn't mean that you will be removed from the database. If your family tree is posted on the Internet, take it off. So many include mother's maiden names and thieves love those.

2. Conceal public records.
Odds are, your home address is posted right now on the Internet. Most county and state offices publish public records online. Since buying and selling a home is a public record, your home address is now a lot easier to find. Talk to your attorney and have your deed changed. Put the house in the name of a trust that obviously doesn't contain your name. Divorce records, bankruptcy or paternity suits could show up. Those are normally public records.

If you want to see for yourself, a good place to start is at The National Center for State Courts. This site maintains a listing of links to State, Federal, and International Court Web sites.

3. Don't be gullible.
Shop online only with known, reputable companies. When you are about to give up some personal information, look for the closed padlock on the bottom of the page. Read the company's privacy policy to learn how it safeguards your customer data. If you don't like it, don't shop there.

Thieves are clever. They set up bogus sites offering you a free credit card. You may even see a lock and key on the browser. Unless you are 100% sure that it's legit, call the toll-free number and do it the old fashioned way. You might get an e-mail that looks like it is really from your service provider or even the IRS. The message says that they need your Social Security number or credit card number or password to update its records. Don't respond to the scam. A company wouldn't send out unsolicited e-mail to get personal data.

4. Protect your computer.
Get a firewall. It blocks data coming in and out of your computer. When your computer is connected to the Internet, it's a two way street. Make sure that your firewall protects data coming in and going out. Norton makes a good firewall. ZoneAlarm offers a free personal edition firewall.

If you have a router, you have a hardware-based firewall and that should be enough. Also, when you are not using your computer, turn it off. This is especially important with an always-on Internet connection. And you need anti-virus software. Programs can get on your computer that would allow a person free access to your files. If you don't need to share files on your computer, turn that option off in the Control Panel.

5. Passwords.
So many of us save our account and password information on our computers. It's called autocomplete and it's handy. Type one letter and options pop up. Click tab and the saved password appears automatically. On AOL, you can have your password saved so you don't have to type it in. Bad idea. Anyone with access to your computer-from your kid's friends, to your housekeeper or repair people--can get easily to your sensitive information. And make sure that your password isn't obvious-name, birthday, etc. Use a combination of letters and characters and make that password at least 8 characters long.