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I’m sure someone received a raise after devising the Citibank campaign that uses humor to spread awareness about identity theft. We’ve all seen the hilarious commercials that portray a grumpy man sitting in his easy chair describing his new leather boustier or a sad grandma cleaning her pool who is “getting me a sweet new pickup.”

No, it would not be funny to be a victim of identity theft.ÿ Yes, there are precautions to take, but one of them is not having every cashier compare the signature on the back of my credit card to what I hastily scribbled on the receipt, anxious to leave the store.

While shopping this weekend with my roommate, a cashier asked for my driver’s license in this exact situation.

I wasn’t bothered or offended; the back of my card is worn and the signature is hard to read.ÿ I had no problem digging out my driver’s license, because it’s for my own safety, right? Surely, if someone else using my stolen credit card tried to buy something and didn’t present my driver’s license, this 17-year-old would stop them.

But the cashier had already rung the entire purchase onto my card and produced a string of receipts for me to sign and keep. Driver’s license or not, it seemed a little late in the process to decide if I could use this form of payment. Was she going to refund the purchase and just hand the card back to me?

Out of curiosity, I returned to the store with my smudged credit card in hopes to repeat the situation. It must not be too strict of a store policy; this cashier didn’t ask for a second form of ID.

I’ve worked part-time jobs in retail – one at a neighborhood Hallmark store and the other at an Old Navy Outlet store. At both places, the person appointed to train me on the cash register said to check the signatures on people’s credit cards. Never did he or she instruct me on what to do if someone’s handwriting didn’t match and if a person didn’t have an ID with them. I don’t know what I would have done, except refund the purchase and return the card to a very unhappy customer.

In the event that I was using a stolen credit card on Saturday, what would a cashier do? A store has no right to confiscate the card just because I “forgot my driver’s license,” and it can’t justify calling the police over a simple smudged signature.

Maybe the cashier should print out another receipt and let me try again. I might be able to make the signature look similar the second time. Or I’ll just go shop online, where all I need to do is punch in 12 digits and an expiration date.

The whole practice is asinine.ÿ Like most paranoia, common sense will prevent identity theft, instead of wasting both the customer and cashier’s time comparing often illegible scribbles of ink.

Someone first must steal a credit card or the information needed to apply for one before he or she even starts shopping.ÿ People need to be more concerned about taking more productive measures in preventing this than relying on cashiers who see hundreds of cards a day.

By saving and shredding all receipts, bank statements, ATM slips, credit card bills and any other document containing account numbers, a person can help prevent his or her account numbers and important information from being stolen.

Identity theft also is prevented by shredding all credit card applications sent through the mail, especially if they are marked “pre-approved.” Anyone who gets ahold of a pre-approved credit card application can mail it in, pretending to be the person it is addressed to, and receive a card.

When shopping online, be critical of Web sites asking for your credit or bank information.ÿ It’s like what we all learn when doing research: If a source doesn’t look credible, don’t use it.ÿ The same goes for shopping online. If the Web site looks sketchy, don’t give out your credit card number.

Simple preventive strategies are going to be more worthwhile than having a credit card scrutinized every time it’s used, especially if it is being used after already being stolen.