: Any time you use your credit card online, your identity is at risk. Organized crime factions from all over the world have streamlined the process of extracting your personal details from all sorts of places, especially shopping sites. These attackers can harvest thousands or even millions of credit cards in one fell swoop. That's a problem for two reasons.

First, and most obviously, there's the problem of having your credit card used to purchase all kinds of goods in places you've never been. Usually your bank protects you from such fraudulent charges. But it's still a hassle to change your account numbers.

But these days, the bad guys aren't satisfied with credit cards alone. In fact, individual card numbers aren't worth that much. But when those numbers are combined with other commonly available bits of personal information--such as addresses and birthdays--attackers can then assemble a virtual dossier of your private information. Identity thieves can parlay that information to secure credit in your name. That credit can be more valuable to them than your credit card and far more difficult and expensive for you to fix: Bank protections focus on credit cards They are much less help when money is directly extracted from accounts, via debit cards or electronic fund transfers.

: The best defense against identity theft is to do business only with reputable merchants. Apply the proverbial sniff-test when selecting an online retailer. Does it feel and look legit? Check the merchant at the , or look for their ranking on the list. Check out for feedback on opinion sites like ( and ). In other words, do your homework before you plunk down your credit card.