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You’re never going to be completely safe from the threat of identity theft, but you can take measures to protect yourself just by being a little more aware of how you’re handling your personal information.

1. Keep all hard copies of your identity-related information safe. This includes your Social Security card, driver’s license, credit card numbers, and list of passwords.

2. Use a shredder. Shred, don’t just toss, all documents containing personal information, especially mail offers for credit cards or student loans.

3. Don’t let your mail pile up. Check your mailbox daily to prevent identity thieves from getting easy access to your personal info, or consider renting a mailbox or P.O. box that makes it harder for thieves to break in.

4. Secure access to your computer. If you’ve got multiple roommates or live in a high-traffic area like a dorm or co-op, make sure you’re protecting any personal info stored on your desktop or laptop by using hard-to-guess passwords and locking out access when you’re not around.

5. Don’t sign the back of your credit or debit cards. Instead, write “see ID,” so if your cards are ever stolen, thieves won’t be able to use them as easily.

6. Avoid using your Social Security number online. If you’re applying for anything online or over the phone, ask if you can use alternative identifying information.

7. Set your online profiles and personal blogs to private. Unless you restrict access to your accounts, anyone on the Web will be able to see all the personal information you share online through your blogs, Facebook profile, or MySpace page.

8. Watch for phishing scams. Check the URLs of webpages you visit to make sure they’re not fake duplicates of official pages you use for online transactions, set up to steal your information.

9. Watch your online activity on Wi-Fi networks. Use caution when signing on to any unsecured networks, and don’t send any personal information online.

10. Get creative with your passwords. Don’t use birthdays, pet names, your mother’s maiden name, or even any word in the dictionary, and don’t use the same password for all your accounts. Keep your passwords hard to crack by mixing upper-case with lower-case and including at least one number and one symbol; try tricks like substituting @ for the letter a, 3 for the letter e, and ! or 1 for the letter i.

Related Article: Identity Theft: Why Students Are Targets and What to Do If It Happens