Release Date: September 29 , 2009

Contact:

Glen Kitzmann , Deputy Chief Investigator

(805) 477-1682

District Attorney Gregory D. Totten announced today that the Ventura County District Attorney's Office has partnered with Community West Bank to help educate the public on the various ways to guard against becoming a victim of identity theft.

The crime of identity theft continues to be one of the fastest growing crimes of the 21st century and is a major concern to the law enforcement community. To help combat the identity theft problem, the District Attorney has assigned a full-time investigator to exclusively handle these unique types of cases. So far the District Attorney's Office has filed over 100 new identity theft cases in 2009.

For maximum protection against identity theft, individuals are encouraged to keep any personal information about themselves as private as possible. They need to be particularly protective of their social security number, as a social security number is the golden key to identity theft. To avoid having personal information fall into the wrong hands, District Attorney Totten strongly recommends individuals shred any documents they discard that contain any potential personal information. This includes credit card receipts and pre-approved credit applications. This important step alone can offer more protection against identity theft than any other suggestion or recommendation.

To assist individuals and businesses with the proper disposal of documents which contain personal information, Community West Bank will be hosting two free events and are inviting the public to bring their personal documents (limit two boxes per household/business) for secure, on-site shredding. They are scheduled as follows:

Wednesday, October 7, 2009         Friday, October 9, 2009

11:00 a.m. to 1 p.m.                       11:00 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Westlake Village Office                   Ventura Branch Office

951 Westlake Blvd.,                        1463 South Victoria Avenue

Westlake Village, CA                       Ventura, CA

                                                       (In the Victoria Village Shopping Center )

ShredRite trucks will be on site to provide safe and secure shredding, and individuals can personally observe the shredding of their private documents.

Participants will also have the opportunity to pick up valuable information provided by the Ventura County District Attorney's Office that explains measures which can be taken to safeguard against identity theft and fraud.

“We served record numbers of attendees at our events in April,” stated Lynda Nahra, Community West Bank President and CEO. “It just shows how aware our community has become about protecting themselves from identity theft. We are pleased to be able to offer this free service for a second time this year.”