Staying Alert for Identity Fraud
In the past few years identity fraud has risen dramatically. In this insidious form of credit fraud, a thief steals your good credit by taking over or opening accounts in your name, running up large balances, and leaving you to deal with the collectors when they come calling.
We know we should check our credit card statements every month for charges that we haven’t made. But that only catches the thief who uses an account you know you have.
Identity theft occurs when someone uses your personal information without your permission to commit fraud or other crimes. While you can’t entirely control whether you will become a victim, there are steps you can take to minimize your risk.
New accounts opened with your identity will appear on your credit report, revealing identity fraud to you. If you don’t check your credit report, it could be months before the credit grantor, fed up with nonpayment, turns the account over to a collector who tracks you down and demands payment for a loan you’ve never even heard of.
As with much less problematic inaccuracies, identity fraud is something you can detect and remedy most effectively by checking your credit history thoroughly and on a routine basis.
One missing puzzle piece can dramatically change a puzzle’s characteristics. The same is true with a person’s identity - one bit of personal information is all someone needs to steal your identity.
If you think your identity has been stolen. Here’s what to do:
1. Contact the fraud departments of any one of the three consumer reporting companies to place a fraud alert on your credit report. The fraud alert tells creditors to contact you before opening any new accounts or making any changes to your existing accounts. You only need to contact one of the three companies to place an alert. The company you call is required to contact the other two, which will place an alert on their versions of your report, too. Once you place the fraud alert in your file, you’re entitled to order free copies of your credit reports, and, if you ask, only the last four digits of your Social Security number will appear on your credit reports.
2. Close the accounts that you know or believe have been tampered with or opened fraudulently.
3. File a report with your local police or the police in the community where the identity theft took place. Get a copy of the report or at the very least, the number of the report, to submit to your creditors and others that may require proof of the crime.
4. File your complaint with the FTC. The FTC maintains a database of identity theft cases used by law enforcement agencies for investigations.
Print This Article
