Identity Theft Crisis

It?s one of the country?s fastest growing crimes ? but how do you stop someone from stealing your personal details and using them to get credit in your name? There are a number of ways in which you can help to defend yourself ? and your finances ? from identity fraud.

The electoral roll is used by lenders to verify that you live where you say you do – if you?re already registered, an identity thief will be unable to register in your name. If you haven?t already done so, protect yourself by contacting your local council to register to vote.

An unidentified or suspicious transaction is often one of the first signs of ID fraud. Ensure you thoroughly check your credit card and bank statements for unusual entries. Your credit report can also indicate that someone is using your identity to apply for credit, so check it regularly for applications you didn?t make or accounts you didn?t open. You can view your free credit report online by signing up to a credit monitoring service that will alert you every time there?s a change that could indicate fraud.

If you have had key items stolen, such as credit cards or your passport, report these to the police and any other relevant organisations in order to warn them of potentially fraudulent activity in your name. Thieves may also intercept mail to steal vital information so if any of your mail is going missing, notify the Post Office immediately, and ensure you have mail forwarded when you move.

If you go away on holiday, arrange for your post to be collected regularly to avoid it being stolen and used to commit Identity theft.

An old catalogue with your name, address and account number on it could be useful to fraudsters so ensure that you don?t throw away anything containing personal information that could be used to steal your identity. If in doubt, shred it. Also avoid carrying important documents around unless you really need them. Your passport, driving licence and payment cards can all be used by criminals, so make sure they are kept in a safe place.

Several criminal ploys exist to get hold of your personal details, including cold calls and unsolicited e-mails, so be wary of sharing confidential information with anybody. This includes PINs, bank account details and passwords.

What?s more, steer clear of opening attachments to unsolicited e-mails or visiting dubious-looking web sites – they could contain a virus that will steal important data from your hard disk. Always make sure your computer is protected by installing the latest security patches and anti-virus software on your computer. Increasingly popular social networking sites are ideal for Identity thieves as they can use personal details such as your full address, date of birth, children?s and pet?s names to obtain your password or PIN.

In summary, to protect yourself from ID thieves, use the tips above to ensure that you keep your confidential information secure and stay on top of ID fraud by checking your credit report on a regular basis.

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Identity Crisis: Protect Your Identity
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Identity fraud is the fastest-growing crime in America. With millions of victim…

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Current studies show that ID Theft is at epidemic proportions. The Federal Trade Commission surveys estimated that there are close to 9.9 million victims and growing by 2 to 3 million a year.

For individuals that are not victims of identity theft, the best thing you can do is check your credit report regularly, focusing on two categories.

* Inquiries from unfamiliar companies. Here we are talking about someone applying for something in your name in a state that you don’t live in. Remember inquiries are the result of you applying for credit.

* Unfamiliar Accounts (tradelines). Are there debts or new credit listed on your credit report that you are not familiar with?

There are 3 major Bureaus that provide services to monitor your credit report. These services give e-mails to you promptly if there are any changes to your report.

What to Do if ID Theft happens to you.

You want to keep a detailed log of events as you start the dispute process. You do this in case you run into problems with a creditor. The first step obviously is contact the 3 credit bureaus, local police, creditors, etc…… You keep detailed conversations logs with any of these entities you communicate with. Also keeps receipts, bills, or out of pocket expenses you incur during the process of disputing. I would also make note of the emotional stress and how it is affecting your work performance and personal relationships. In addition your expenses and time could be tax-deductible in certain circumstance.

Contact Law enforcement

Here is the properties procedure for contacting the authorities so you can file a formal report. You should include all fraudulent accounts in the report. As the Credit Bureaus say they are able to remove disputes, remember to keep a copy of the report number and contact info.

Who to contact:

* FTC.gov/bcp/coline/pubs/credit/affidavit.pdf

* Local Police Department

* FTC 800-438-4338 or 800?ID THEFT

Credit Bureaus – Steps to take with the CRAs

* Notify one of the credit bureaus fraud units that you are victim of Identity Theft. This Bureau will be responsible for telling the other 2 Bureaus. (Equifax: 800-525-6285; Experian: 888-397-3742; Trans Union: 800-680-7289)

* Tell Bureaus to flag you credit report with fraud alert

* Get a copy of your credit report with scores

* Once you have read your report, send a dispute letter, accompanied with police report along with the FTC fraud affidavit specifying which accounts are fraudulent.

* Subscribe to the Bureaus monitoring services of your credit report

* Consider signing up for Trusted ID services which will block your credit report so only you can use it.

* Ask the Bureaus to contact the creditors that fraudulent activities have taken place.

Debt Collectors- You will be getting calls from debt collectors more than likely. If they call you:

* Get the debt collectors companies name, address and there phone number. Let him or her know you are noting the time and date of the conversation in your log activity book

* Inform the collection agency you are a victim of Identity Theft

* Provide the FTC uniform fraud affidavit

* Ask for number and name of credit issuer.

* Send the debt collector a letter, stating that you do not owe this debt and that the account has been close.

* Request in writing that the account is being flagged as fraudulent, and is being closed. You also should request in writing that the fraudulent account is being removed from your credit report.

New accounts opened in your name: the Identity Thief has opened new accounts in your good name: what to do. The credit report you pulled should list all creditors that have accounts in your name with contact numbers.

* Notify each creditor of the identity theft that has taken place to you. You will be asked to send a fraud affidavit. (Be sure to put all of this in your log)

* Ask the creditors to send you any application or fraudulent activity that has happened in your good name.

* Add passwords to all accounts

* If the thief has got a hold of your checking account, credit cards, get replacements with new numbers. Call and request these accounts to be closed as well.

* Fill out FTC uniform fraud affidavit.

Your Checking account- If the thief has written checks in your name here is what you do.

* Call your local police, and file a report

* Call your bank and close the account immediately

* Remember to keep good logs

* Typically your bank will refund you your money, and ask for a copy of police report filed.

This stuff is serious business; I hope this will help you resolve issues involving identity theft to you.

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Identity Theft is when someone uses another person’s social security number, driver license, name, address, telephone number and any other information about that particular person as their own. The unauthorized person that obtains this information without the other person’s knowledge uses this information to commit theft and fraud.

How does a person committing ID theft get my information? By going through your trash, hacking into a computer that you may use, securing a copy of your credit report, stealing credit card and debit card numbers that you may have, stealing your mail,completing a change of address form to reroute your mail to a different address, stealing your purse or wallet, and scamming information from you by posing as a business person.

How would I know if I am a victim of ID theft? If you receive credit card statements for accounts you did not apply for, you do not receive your mail, your credit is being denied and you do not know why, counterfeit checks are used to withdraw money from your bank account, you receive calls from collection agencies about bills for accounts established with your personal information that you do not know about,and other problems that you may have with your personal information.

Should I order a copy of my credit reports to find out if I am a victim of identity theft? Yes, you may want to consider doing this if you suspect that you are a victim of identity theft. You would want to order a copy of your credit reports from all three credit reporting agencies which are: Equifax www.equifax.com 1-800-685-1111; Experian www.experian.com 1-888-397-3742; and; TransUnion www.transunion.com 1-800-916-8800.

What should I do if my identity is stolen by someone? Contact the three credit reporting agencies as soon as possible and let them know that you are a victim of ID theft and ask them to place a fraud alert and your statement as a victim in your credit report file. Order a copy of your credit report from each agency to check the information on your report.

Contact the credit reporting agencies fraud units at these telephone numbers or addresses: Equifax: 1-800-525-6285, P.O. Box 74021, Atlanta, GA. 30374-0241:: Experian: 1-888-397-3742, P.O. Box 9532, Allen, TX. 75013:: TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289, Fraud Victim Assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA. 92834-6790.

Should I close my credit and checking accounts if ID theft has occurred? Yes, you may want to consider closing your credit and checking accounts if you suspect identity theft. Contact your bank and creditors about your identity being stolen and consider closing your accounts and establish new ones.

If your checks are stolen, request that your bank notify the check verification company that they use. You may also want to contact the major check verification companies as well.

The major check verification companies that you would want to contact are the following: Telecheck, 1-800-710-9898 or 1-800-927-0188:: Certegy Inc., 1-800-437-5120:: and; International Check Services, 1-800-631-9656.

You may also want to contact a company known as Scan at 1-800-262-7771 to find out if an identity thief has been using your checks. In addition, you should also contact your local police department and report that your identity has been stolen.

Make sure that you file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission about your identity being stolen as well. You can file this report at www.consumer.gov/idtheft.

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