Identity Theft Crisis

It’s the number one source of consumer complaints at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and unfortunately, it’s one of the simplest crimes to commit. Identity theft involves information from your daily life, from shopping, bill-paying, and even applying for a job. Thieves take advantage of everyday opportunities to discover your personal information, including your Social Security number (SSN), bank or credit card account numbers, income, name, address, or phone number, and use it to commit fraud or other crimes.

How can a stranger get to your information? According to the FTC, identity thieves may pose as legitimate representatives of an organization, as business professionals or agents of the government, conning you into revealing sensitive information. Common scams include impersonating employees from banks, credit card companies, Internet service providers, and utility companies. If someone calls you claiming to represent a legitimate organization, confirm this by calling the customer service number listed on your statement or bill.

Thieves may also use your place of employment to get the information they need. A co-worker may steal information from your employer; someone could hack into your company’s computer and copy employee records; or a criminal could resort to the old-fashioned method of bribing someone you work with for your information. Check with your employer to find out the company policy on securing your records and disposing of them when you’re gone.

If your employer is authorized to pull credit reports on employees or potential customers, someone could take advantage of this access to retrieve illegal reports. Criminals may also pose as employers, landlords, or collection agents to pull your credit information. It’s a good idea to order a copy of your credit report once a year to check for unauthorized entries.

Shredding your documents before you throw them away is also good idea, whether at work or at home. Identity thieves have been known to sift through garbage, in the trash can or at the dump, to find sensitive information.

The most common form of identity theft is credit card fraud. Technology has allowed criminals to begin stealing your credit or debit card numbers as you use the cards, “skimming” them with an information storage device. In addition, thousands of drivers’ licenses and credit and debit cards are stolen each year. Keeping your Social Security card in a secure location and safeguarding your purse or wallet while at work are necessary precautions.

Even your mail is a source for identity thieves, who may complete credit card applications in your name and go on a spending spree. After stealing your bank or credit card statements, tax information, or box of replacement checks, criminals are able to access your accounts and spend the funds in your name. They may even change the address on your existing account, diverting the bills to keep you from recognizing the problem until it’s too late. Being aware of your billing cycles can help you catch a discrepancy in the arrival of your statements.

Identity thieves have a variety of ways to use your information for their personal gain. They may shop for big-ticket items using your credit or bank account information and then sell the items for cash. With your SSN and date of birth, they can open new bank accounts or apply for lines of credit. In fact, banks have granted loans to criminals using stolen identities for purchases as large as cars.

Telephone or internet service can be set up using your SSN. Thieves can avoid impending eviction or accumulated debt by filing bankruptcy in your name. Perhaps the most emotionally traumatic, police could issue a warrant for you if a criminal was arrested using your name and failed to appear at a court hearing.

The ways that identity thieves have conceived to acquire your personal information are numerous, but your vigilance and heightened awareness can curb their ability to make you a victim. And, if you sustain credit damage, go to http://www.apscreen.com to find out what you can do about it.

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This whole identity theft thing gives you the creeps, right? You’re not only infuriated by, but terrified of the thought of somebody sifting through your trash, brazenly stealing your mail, or hijacking your wallet not for your money so much as your social security number. You may even feel helpless.

While identity theft is a serious issue, there are things you can do to reduce your risk of being an identity theft victim. The following is a list of just a few things you can do to protect your identity:

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Putting measures into place to avoid an identity theft scam at your business probably does not cross your mind very much, if at all, especially if you consider your business to be a quote-unquote small business; however, complaint boards all over the Internet are packed full of complaints related to identity theft and fraud. If you think crooks only target individuals or large corporations, then think again. In reality, even small businesses can be the target of identity fraud. People can use your business identity or secure your list of customers in order to rip off the public or perform other criminal activities both online and offline. Here are some ways in which you can protect your business and your customers from such scams, frauds and ripoffs.

Getting to know how criminals operate is a good way on how to avoid identity theft fraud at your business. Although the most publicized cases of corporate identity thefts being reported are about crooks stealing customer information from the database of large companies, hacking is not the only threat to your business. In fact, cheating and getting access from inside your system is also a big headache. Some online scam artists will try to rip off your customers by pretending to be representatives of your company or even phish information or identities of your present employees to get to you. There are things that criminals can do to twist the arms of your employees, even your most trusted ones, just to squeeze the information they want regarding you, your customers and your business.

So, what can you do on how to avoid identity theft fraud at your business? Make sure that you invest in good software that will prevent viruses, malwares and spywares from entering your company?s computer database. You need such security measures to ensure that you are protected from outside hackers and ripoffs. In order to protect yourself from the inside, you need to be more careful with the people you hire. Also, take the time to inform your employees about the growing threat of identity theft fraud and tell them how they can detect criminals trying to phish information from them. In addition, it is important that you do not allow personal emails, external messaging applications and other personal activities on your company?s computer network. Perhaps if your employees understand how these things are threatening, they won’t feel as if you are attempting to stifle them personally.

Financial liability is one of the biggest impacts of being a victim of corporate identity theft. To protect yourself from financial repercussions and scams, you should find an assurance agency that will help cover loses and other related expenses in case problems regarding hacking and identity theft arise.

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The bear in your campground analogy:

Perfect protection is unreachable but you can be better protected than most people with reasonable efforts. The “Bear in Your Campground” story applies here. When a bear comes into your campground, you can’t outrun the bear but you can outrun the other campers. The fact is that there is no way you can be sure to outrun the thieves either, but you can outrun the other potential victims – and that may be enough. I will try to help you make the trade-offs that work for you.

There are lots of people out there making it easy to steal their identities. You don’t want to be one of them. There is a lot you can do without major expenditures and major changes in your lifestyle. The point of this book is to teach you what you can do and let you make intelligent trade-offs yourself of security versus cost and inconvenience.

Things to do right away:

The point of this is to get you off to a fast start, positioned to better protect yourself. Some of the things you should do right away include:

Review your last bank and card statements.

Be sure all listed transactions were authorized by a family member, don’t assume. Also check to see that you are not missing the most recent statement, as that might be a sign of account takeover. List each account and card on the Account and Card Inventory Form provided in the back of this book. Include on your list your divers license and ID cards from your employer, insurers, that would have to be replaced if your wallet was lost or stolen. This form will be an important tool for detection as well as recovery.

Order a credit report.

One report from each agency per year is now free. Some people get one each four months, on a revolving basis, so that they never have to pay for a report. Some request all three or each more often. This is one of those trade-offs of protection versus expense and effort. To order, go to the Annual Credit Report Service at www.annualcreditreport.com, call them at 877-322-8228, or contact a specific credit agency:

* Equifax: 800-685-1111 or www.equifax.com

* Experian: 888-397-3742 or www.experian.com

* Transunion: 800-888-4213 or www.transunion.com

Calendar the date when you want to order the next credit report. And note which agencies are next in rotation, if you are ordering one at a time.

When I first did this I found a debt listed that had been run up by my former wife. I called the bank and got them to take it off of my credit report. As reviewing your credit report is an ongoing habit, we will discuss what to do when the report arrives in the next section.

Install a locking mailbox or get a Post Office Box.

Incoming mail can provide a thief with credit cards, applications, checks, and various identifying information. I put up the first locking mailbox in my neighborhood. It cost $60 and a little time. But when one neighbor had a box of checks stolen and another lost incoming pay and dividend checks, I wasn’t the only one for long.

When my wife went out to run in the mornings, at least once a week she noticed all the unlocked mailboxes were hanging open. One day in the park I found all of a certain neighbor’s junk mail. But not those credit card offers and nothing that resembled account statements, or other financial or government mail – those were too valuable for the thieves to toss. What was going on was that groups of teens were cruising the streets making quick grabs into unlocked boxes. They sell “interesting” items to a broker. The broker sorts out the items by type and sells groups of like items to transaction specialists. Certain thieves pass bad checks, others use deposit slips, still others specialize in cards-related frauds.

P.O. boxes may be safer, if less convenient and more expensive, another trade-off. The bear might tear into your locked mailbox, but if the other campers have open jars of honey out front, then why would he bother you?

Get gel ballpoint pens for writing checks.

A thief can take a check from your outgoing mail, remove regular ballpoint pen ink with nail polish remover (protecting the signature, of course), and have a signed blank check – on your account.

The cheapest investment you can make is to buy a gel ballpoint pen and keep it clipped to your checkbook. Gel is a newer kind of ink which cannot be removed by washing. The point is to look for the word “GEL” on the pen, buy it, and use it for all your checks.

Get a shredder.

A crosscut or confetti style is best, as strips can be reconstructed. Anything with your social security number on it or containing personal data is fair game to the thieves when it hits your garbage bag or can. “Dumpster diving” is a profitable profession.

Things you don’t want fished from your trash include bank and card statements, old taxes, voided or old checks, deposit slips, credit applications you don’t want to complete, credit offers, and those checks the credit card companies send you to initiate low interest rate loans and balance transfers.

Change poor PINs and passwords.

They should be at least six numbers and/or characters. They should not be easy to guess or based on information which might be in your wallet. The first numbers a purse or wallet thief would try are parts of your birth date, phone number, SSN, and any other key number they find in you wallet. Realize that your SSN can be accessed by a large number of people. A thief might obtain it and try different parts of it in guessing your PIN even if they don’t find it in your wallet.

There are trade-offs here too.

* Multiples – If you always use the same password it is easy to remember but people at each site have access to it. So you also might want to use a unique password on banking sites. If you use the same ID and password on many sites you are exposing them to key employees of multiple companies.

* Complexity – Complex passwords may be hard to recall and tempt you to write them down in a handy spot.

* Real or made-up – To be extra careful, you might create and use an imaginary “mother’s maiden name”, as the real one could be researched. It is on your birth certificate, for example.

Set up a password on each bank and card account.

Use your Account and Card Inventory Form as a guide to contact each bank. Once set up, the password can be used by the bank to determine it is really calling them with a transaction such as an address change or funds transfer. If the only way they can identify you is by asking for personal data, your account is exposed to any thief who has obtained your data.

Remove any PINs or passwords written in your wallet / purse.

They could be a goldmine for a thief.

Secure any PIN and password list within your home.

Don’t leave them out, in a well labelled file in an unlocked file cabinet, on your computer in an easy to find file, or on a notebook PC that could be stolen.

Protect Social Security Numbers (SSN).

Remove them from your checks, driver’s license, resume, or other documents where it is not required. My employer forced their insurance companies to take our SSNs off of our group insurance cards.

Remove unneeded IDs from your wallet, purse, and car.

This will reduce the potential damage from theft and reduce the work you will have to do if theft does occur.

Protect your PC’s

Get and run anti-spyware and anti-virus programs and firewalls. Be sure to use the encryption option on wireless networks.

Protect Yourself – Avoidance Habits to Develop and Keep

Even as you complete the initial protection steps described in the prior chapter, you also need to start practicing on-going protective habits.

Review this list from time to time.

The first habit is to learn and repeat each of the others. Put “review the good habits list” on your calendar, as a reminder, until you regularly practice each of these good habits.

Protect your outgoing mail.

Taking outgoing mail can be lucrative for the thief in many ways.

* Applications – Applications for cards or loans can be “edited” by thieves so that they get the payoff and you get the collection calls.

* Checks – A check in the outgoing mail can be as good as gold to them. Even if you used a gel pen to prevent alteration of that check, the data on your check can be used to produce (or even order) perfectly valid looking checks that can be written by the thief that will clear and post against your checking account.

* Deposits – An outgoing deposit-by-mail is a double gift to the thief. Not only can they “edit” the checks to their specifications but they can use the deposit slip too. That scam goes like this: They go into your bank (probably a remotely located branch so they aren’t recognized) and hand the teller the deposit slip along with some bogus checks they printed up on their PC or have from a nearly zero balance account out of state. Then they ask for some cash back from the deposited funds. They are usually handed the cash, since it is less that the funds already available on your account. When the deposited checks bounce back against your account, the thief has been gone for two or three days.

* Data sources – Various other sorts of mail (like car registrations, tax forms) can help the thief build a file on you which will later be used to open accounts in your name. You can count on him running up overdrafts and bad debts in your good name.

For all of these reasons, place outgoing mail only in secure mail boxes, not the office OUT box and not your personal mailbox. The big blue USPS boxes are pretty well bear-proof.

Be wary at ATMs and points of purchase

The ideal situation for a thief is to have both your card and your PIN. They will go to quite a bit of trouble to get them. If they can copy the data from the magnetic stripe on the back of the card they can create an exact copy of your card. Even with only plain white card stock they can use the magnetic stripe data to create a “white card” that will work perfectly well on an ATM, gas pump or other unmanned locations.

* Getting your PIN – Watch out for “shoulder surfing”. Be aware of anyone watching you enter your PIN at an ATM or point of purchase terminal. Some thieves even use a video camera to record your entry from a short distance or hide a camera to record and transmit your finger movements on the keypad.

* Getting your data – Your card’s magnetic stripe data can be read by one of three types of small skimmer devices.

* One is a portable device that can be taped to a waiter’s arm. They go to a private space, roll up their sleeve, swipe the card, then go about their normal business.

* Another kind is mounted under the counter. You won’t see the card swiped but it will disappear from view momentarily.

* Some thieves go so far as to install a skimmer on a bank’s ATM. These look like part of the machine but they are unauthorized “add-ons” that read the magnetic stripe on the card before passing it on to the real ATM card reader.

* Getting your card – Some thieves us a device known as a “Lebanese loop” to steal your card at the ATM. The loop is a strip of plastic they stick into the cred reader slot. Your card is caught by it and jams. After you leave in frustration the thief uses a tool to pull out the loop and your card with it.

Use safer ways to make payments.

It is safer to use credit over debit cards, as they provide better protection against fraudulent charges and their spending limit is most likely below the amount than can be taken from your deposit (checking or savings) account. Once money has been taken from your deposit account, it may take some time to resolve the issue with the bank. In the mean time you may not have access to all of your funds. A credit card balance, on the other hand, you can simply not pay if you have lodged a legitimate complaint in the right manner.

Checks are relatively easy to manipulate. Even if gel ink is used the check can be scanned, the image manipulated, then printed (including the signature). It is remarkably easy for people to order checks on your account and have them sent to an address supplied by the thief. They just say they are you and have recently moved. Many check printers do nothing to verify the identity of the person placing the order, On-line bill paying is available from most banks and is far safer. Once you get used to it you will probably find it more convenient as well. Just be careful with your on-line ID and password.

Now obviously there are other kinds of risks in the world that need to be considered. Over use of credit cards, without regular full payments of the balance, can be a problem. To address this, some families use one card for debt and another for routine purchases. They look for a low-interest card for the first purpose and pay off the other each month, without exception.

Close old accounts.

An amazing number of accounts are sitting around the country in an inactive status. These are prime targets for the thief. If they send in or call in a change of address for the account they are set to strike. They can then run up a card balance, get checks printed and overdraft a deposit account, and set up new accounts related to the original.

After you try to close an account, note it on your Account and Card Inventory Form but don’t remove it until you see a credit report listing it as closed. It once took me five trys to get a card issues to actually cancel my card account.

Establish good habits for new accounts.

Ask what the statement date will be. Establish passwords when you set up the account, as described in Chapter 2. Add new accounts to the Account and Card Inventory Form as soon as you get them. Watch for the first statement and review it carefully.

Avoid common mistakes

Doing the things described above is important. But it is equally important that you avoid common mistakes.

* Don’t give out data – Incoming-phone calls or e-mail can be a source of data to the thief. They can later use that data to pretend to be you while on the phone to a bank, check printer, or loan company. Once they are accepted as you, they can run any number of scams:

* Take over your account by changing the address of record. They can then transact without your finding out about the activity.

* Set up a new account, card, or loan and link it to the existing accounts. They then are positioned to make transfers as well as play on your good credit.

Another form of thief’s data request is “phishing” e-mails. These can seem to be from your bank, card company, brokerage, or other trusted financial institution. They send you to an apparently valid web site that asks for your ID and PIN data. They can be very realistic, with your bank’s logo, the look and feel of their web site and even seem to have taken you to the familiar site.

Don’t ever provide ID or PIN’s as a response to e-mails or calls. Call the bank and report the e-mail. Go to your bank’s Web site only in your usual manner, by typing in their URL or clicking from your browser’s Favorites or Bookmarks list.

* Don’t leave data around – Don’t leave the customer copy of a charge slip on the table after paying for a meal or making a store purchase. Although the law now requires that only the last digits of your card number appear on the slip, some older systems are still out there which have the whole card number. This applies also to carbon copies and the carbon sheets themselves.

*Don’t write your PIN or password on anything that isn’t very secure. This includes your house or unsecured PC file.

* Don’t use your SSN unnecessarily – Don’t put your SSN on your checks, driver’s license, resumes or anything else, if you can avoid it. Don’t give it out unless absolutely necessary. It is legally required in relation to any taxable income source. Merchants may not choose to grant you credit if you do not reveal it, it’s your choice (and theirs) in that case. Some people make up a number. This ploy has risks that the number will be found to be invalid or, worse, that the number belongs to someone else. The other person may not have good credit or may even be wanted by law enforcement. You don’t want to appear to be an ID thief yourself.

*Don’t ignore early signs – A common mistake is to take lightly the early signs of identity theft. The quicker it is caught, the sooner it will be resolved and at the least cost in effort and dollars. That is the subject of the next chapter.

This article is from a larger workbook available at www.yourIDsite.com

Copyright Jim G. George

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Have you ever tried shopping online? Why not? Many people find that online shopping is not only easy and convenient, but much cheaper as well. Internet merchants can afford to sell their products for lower prices because of a lower capital needed for maintaining an online store. But don’t forget about the risk of credit card fraud and identity theft when purchasing from the web.

You may not even be aware of it but other people may already be using your personal information to commit fraudulent crimes against you. For instance, one common strategy used by identity thieves is called “phishing”. In fact, this strategy has been used by ID thieves since the 1990s and has become more and more prevalent today.

How is the crime of phishing done? An identity thief will send an email to an unsuspecting victim, disguising as an email from a reputable company or online merchant like the IRS, Amazon, PayPal and other big names on the web. If you’re not aware of identity theft tricks, you may think that the email is indeed from a valid source.

You may be asked to click on a link that leads to a phishing website. This webpage was made to look just like the genuine company and it takes careful examination to recognize a fake one from the real one. The email may ask you to fill out the online form for them to verify your account. But upon submitting that online form, you may not know that you’re also handing out your personal information to identity thieves.

What You Should Do

The Federal Trade Commission warns all consumers against such tricks. Remember that trusted merchants and government agencies will not solicit personal information from consumers through an electronic message.

The best thing to do if you receive a suspicious email is to call the company who appeared to have sent it to confirm. Never attempt to open an email or click on the links in it.

Bear in mind that the URL of a secured website always begins with https://. You should also look for the pad locked icon in the bottom right corner of your browser. If you have been a victim of Identity Theft or credit card fraud, contact the FTC immediately.

Be Alert Against Online Identity Theft

When making an online purchase, check the background and reputation of the internet merchant you intend to purchase from. Don’t just compare shops based on the low prices they offer. If a certain online shop sells items at an incredibly low price, if it doesn’t have a solid track record of service to show, you could be in danger.

You may also prefer to send in your payment through a reputable online system like Pay Pal. This way, you don’t have to reveal your credit card’s number to anyone. See to it that the online shop uses a secured server. There must be a Privacy Policy provided on the site to show that they are concerned about protecting their customer’s personal information.

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Identity theft is one of the most troubling problems of the modern world. Although it is hard to come by good identity theft statistics, one thing is clear. Credit card theft and other forms of theft of identity are on the rise. If this was not troubling enough, consider the fact that you never know when your identity is being stolen. You will only find out days, weeks, or even months later. It is almost impossible to prevent identity theft. At best, all you can do is take steps to make it easier to recover your identity.

Identity theft stats do make one thing clear: people who take steps to protect their identities are much less vulnerable. Identity theft statistics tell us that people who keep good financial records, make sure that their Internet accounts are well protected, frequently change passwords, and regularly check their credit, are less likely to be victimized. When they are the victim of identity theft, these people can resolve the issue much more quickly. It is easier for them to prove that their identity has been stolen and that they are not responsible for any purchases that have been made in their name.

Statistics on identity theft, however, tell us nothing about which steps are the most important, and which ones can be ignored. Because identity theft is such a new problem, identity theft statistics are not all that sophisticated yet. The only solution is to take all the steps that you can to protect your identity. This can prove costly, but it is worth it! For example, according to recent identity theft statistics, if your computer is well secured you are several times less likely to have your identity stolen.

According to identity theft statistics, it is as important to take precautions when you go on vacation as when you are at home. When you are traveling, particularly if you’re going for an extended stay, you are vulnerable. You will not see the mail coming into your house, and will be unaware of unusual charges on your bank account until it is too late. Fortunately, identity theft protection works whether or not you are at home. Identity theft statistics, in fact, do not indicate a significant difference in security between people who are home, and people who are traveling abroad. As long as you protect your identity, you are at a much lower risk of having it stolen. The most important thing is not to delay. Every day without theft protection is another day when you could be victimized.

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Did you know that 52% of all identity theft victims discovered that they were victims by monitoring their accounts with some sort of monitoring service? That percentage represents approximately 5 million people. Identity theft is the modern day plague affecting our wallets instead of our physical well-being. Tales of identity theft are cropping up all across the United States at lightning speed and are on the rise internationally. This trend is expected to continue with identity thieves getting younger and smarter.

You have worked hard all of your life to have a good job, above average home, and good credit. Realizing how easy it could all go away should be incentive enough to investigate something to protect your investments. If you have not already done so, you need to enroll in the most robust identity theft protection you can find and do it now.

There are a lot of different products on the market that will help you protect what is rightfully yours. Do the homework and investigation to find the right identity theft protection product out of the many on the market. Some provide reimbursement coverage while most provide credit alerts when any activity is noted in your credit file.

True, there are measures you can take to assist in your personal protection but they do not always work. I can list each of the preventative ways to safeguard your information but, quite frankly, if a thief wants your identity they will get it if they believe you are of value to them. ID Thieves are more sophisticated these days and are not just counterfeiting new checks based upon stolen account numbers anymore. Some are even stealing their own children’s identities. If they are doing that to their own children then imagine what they will do to steal yours.

The age of checks is going away and is being replaced by debit cards and/or credit cards but that opens up even more problems. If you are using the internet to do transactions you are at immense risk even if you have virus protection and a firewall on your computer. All it takes is a company that has your personal and financial information to be breached and your identity is out in cyber world for all to see.

In summation, the best identity theft protection is due diligence as well as a company working for you behind the scenes watching your back. Get the peace of mind you deserve while you work hard and continue living the American dream.

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“What is there to do when it comes to fixing Identity theft?” ask most fraud victims.

Naturally, this question comes after fraud has happened. Many software programs on the market today are promising to prevent id theft from taking place by making you aware of any flags you establish for existing accounts or new credit lines.

The Federal Trade Commission does offer a slew of great information on it’s website. There is a challenge in trying to tie together all the details about what needs to be done in order to shut down ID fraud, while cleaning up all affected records.

For example, the first piece of sage advice you’ll most often read about will say something like, “Call the credit reporting agencies immediately.” This is absolutely correct. Phone numbers for the big 3 credit reporting agencies are: Trans Union – 800-888-4213, Experian – 888-397-3742 and Equifax – 800-685-1111.

But then what?

There are a few important things you can ask for during the call. For example …

1) You need to request a free copy of your credit report. (Anyone may request a free copy of his or her credit report from CRAs each year. And if you’re denied credit, employment or insurance as a result of identity theft then you’re entitled to an additional free copy of your credit report).

2) Request that a “fraud alert” be attached to your credit profile.

Now comes the more detailed actions. After your credit reports come you must do several important things. Among them are:

3) Specifically identify fraudulent accounts and inquiries and ask that each one be removed from your credit profile. (The CRAs may tell you that you need to do this in writing, which we’ll cover in the next section). Then ask the CRA to send you a copy of the notification(s) of fraud sent to each credit grantor who they contact regarding suspected fraudulent activity.

4) Ask each CRA for a list of names, phone #’s and addresses for all businesses and organizations that looked at your credit history in the past year (and perhaps even longer, depending on how long the fraud has been going on).

Request the agency to call you whenever applications are made for new credit lines in your name. The alert can say something like, “Please contact me immediately at this phone number before issuing any credit. All new credit applications must be validated and personally authorized by me.”

6) Ask the Credit Reporting Agency to contact every company that has received your credit report in the last year and tell them you’re a victim of identity theft. Request that copies of these notices be sent to you in order to make sure the CRAs follow through with your request.

7) Now you need to call the credit grantors your information search has revealed the identity thief has set up fraudulent accounts with. Tell each one you’re the victim of identity theft and indicate the account(s) in question.

Ask each one to stop issuing credit to the fraudster who has stolen your personal information.

9) Request that fraudulent accounts be closed immediately, then ask for their removal from your credit profile. If an identity thief was able to use a valid credit account (one opened by you), such as a credit card account, then you’ll either have to get a new card issued (with a new number) or cancel the card altogether. It’s better to have this kind of request worded something along the lines of, “This account has been closed at the customer’s request.” That reads much better than, “Card was stolen or lost.”.” Wording such as that might negatively impact your credit score in the future.

10) Request all documentation associated with the fraudulent accounts (including original application). Companies are required to send you this information under federal law. Fraudulent applications often contain forged signatures and other information that might be useful to you or law enforcement. Such documentation includes: false application with forged signature, all billing statements, address and phone number where credit cards were mailed, all correspondence between a creditor and the identity thief, plus electronic, audio or video evidence related to the crime.

11) Don’t forget to ask the credit grantor, company or agency to verify your requests … in writing.

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An elaborate identity theft scheme has reached the highest levels of the U.S. financial system, striking the personal bank account of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and his wife. (Aug. 27)

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Identity theft crimes are not new, but they have become more persuasive in the past decade. In mid-2005, San Francisco Chronicle discovered that holders of more than 40 million credit cards were vulnerable to financial fraud because identity thieves had compromised their credit card information. Earlier that year, information and data broker, Reed Elsevier Group PLC, revealed that several hundred thousand people might have had their profiles stolen from one of its U.S. databases. One quickly learns to secure their computer networks so that these kinds of attacks, or leaks are non-existant.

Information compromised included names, age, physical descriptions, mailing addresses, Social Security, and driver license numbers. This is virtually everything an impersonator needs to set up a clone of the identity theft victim, enabling him to make a number of financial and personal transactions in the victim’s name. Usually an identity theft victim is usually under age forty, while about 11 percent of victims are age sixty or older. According to Federal Trade Commission (FTC), one in six identity theft victims said that thieves used their personal information to open at least one new account, such as credit card accounts or loan accounts, to rack up debts on existing accounts. The most recent data indicates that 9.3 million Americans (or 4.25% of all adults) are victims of ID theft on an annual basis. This is an alarming rate and should show you that you NEED to take preventative steps toward protecting your identity.

An identity theft victim risks the destruction of his/her good credit history, and may spend years, and large sums of money restoring the credit history and goodwill. There are instances of an identity theft victim been denied work or insurance or been detained for crimes he did not commit! Some victims of ID theft found that their names have been misused after police stopped them for a traffic violation and discovered that there is a warrant for their arrest. There are also times when an innocent person receives a summons to appear in court to answer for a criminal act. FTC’s latest survey shows ID theft losses to businesses and financial institutions total $52.6 billion annually. Recently, Federal Trade Commission launched a website annualcreditreport where all consumers are eligible for a free copy of their credit reports. Take the time to go to that site and get your free credit report. This can be a step to alerting you to suspicious activity.

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