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Steps that you can be taken if
you are a victim of identity theft
You need to follow four
simple steps as soon as you come to know that you are a victim
of identity theft. You should always keep written proof and
other details ready and handy.
The steps that need to be followed are as
follows:
Step 1: Alert the credit agencies
regarding identify theft and also check all you credit
reports.
By doing this you can prevent the thieves
from opening more accounts in your name and using your
personal details. You should immediately contact any of the
three consumer offence reporting agencies listed below and
report the fraud that you think has been committed. Once you
contact anyone of these agencies an alert is sent to the other
two agencies by this agency. Once you do not receive an alert
from any one of these agencies you should go ahead and
personally contact them immediately.
The contact details of these
agencies are as below:
Equifax: 1-800-525-6285; www.equifax.com; P.O. Box
740241, Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN
(397-3742); www.experian.com; P.O. Box
9532, Allen, TX 75013
TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289; www.transunion.com; Fraud Victim
Assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA
92834-6790
The companies can then provide you with a
detailed copy of your credit report and these agencies are
located all over the nation. You can also request these
agencies to mention only the last four digits of your social
security number on this report. The credit report once
received by should be then reviewed very carefully by you,
mark all the transactions that you have not done and all the
accounts that have not been opened by you. Make a note of all
your transaction and the personal details that are mentioned
about you; be sure that all this information is correct. After
this regularly check all your credit reports periodically at
least for the first couple of years. This will help you detect
any identity theft that might occur.
Step 2: Stop all the
accounts that you think have been a victim of identity
theft:
Make sure to contact all these companies and an
officer in their fraud department. This should be followed by
a written correspondence where you inform the company about
all the problem that you might have faced. This correspondence
should always be accompanied with a proof of the supporting
documents. These mails should be sent with a return receipt
request as this will serve as a proof of you informing these
companies. Keep these receipts with you.
Make sure that a new PIN number is used
by you every time you open a new account or have a new debit
card. You should always information that is not easily
assessable to anyone like you date of birth, pets name or your
social security name etc.
If changes have been made to your account details by
these thieves make sure you inform the companies regarding it
and also make the necessary changes to the account.
Request should be sent to
the companies where changes have been made in your existing
account to provide you with a fraud dispute form or request
them to provide you with details on how to draft a letter for
such a case and then such mails should be sent to the billing
department of the company.
Once you are sure that all the companies have
been informed and they are happy with your arguments, request
them to send you a letter of acceptance and also of closure of
accounts that have been opened by the thieves. This will serve
as a proof if these matters are ever reflected in your credit
report.
Step 3: The next step is to file a report with
the FTC:
This helps the FTC which is a
nation wide organization to track down the thieves and get
hold of them. This also serves as a way for them to get help
from other government departments who can help them track
these miscreants and also help these agencies to track the
companies for violation of carious laws.
The complaint can be made
online using the online forms or you can always contact them
at their toll free hot line number 1-877-ID-THEFT (438-4338);
TTY: 1-866-653-4261; you can also write to them at Identity
Theft Clearinghouse, Federal Trade Commission, 600
Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20580.
You
should make sure to call the hotline number if you have any
updates regarding the identity theft that has occurred.
Step 4: The last and the most important step is
to file a police complaint at the place where this theft has
taken place.
After filing a report one should get a copy of
this report that has been filed by you or at least the report
number. This will help you handle the creditors who want a
proof of the crime taking place. You can also contact the
state attorney who can direct you with the steps that need to
be taken to identify the thief.
While reporting the case with the local police
make sure you take along with you the copy of the form filled
by you with FTC and also carry proof of the theft actually
taking place. Then request the officer to sign on the "Law
Enforcement Report" on this form. If the officer requests you
for more details on the identity proof he can always visit the
official FTC wed site. In some place the officer might not be
able to give you a copy of the report to you however request
him to fill the details in the report.
What are the steps to be taken if one feels that
the local police will not take a report?
The various federal agencies including
state and local police are being educated about the effects of
identity theft, the trauma that is faced by its victims and
also to make them know the importance of taking a report when
someone come to make such an report. However it is not
uncommon to know of some departments which are not taking
these reports. The steps to be taken if you have any problem
while making filing a report are:
1. You should try and provide as mush
information as possible to these agencies regarding identity
theft. You should always carry along with you copies of
various credit reports, bills, debt collection reports, a copy
of identity theft complaint etc, these are important
indications to the police that it is a must for them t file a
report for you to secure rights and this also helps you to
prove your point that this case is true and legitimate.
2. Be stubborn try your best to get the report
made even if the authorities are reluctant to file a case.
Tell them about the importance of this report and also that
various creditors require this report to prove your point
legitimate. Tell them that various consumer reporting agencies
will only block you fake accounts and help you from bad debts
coming in your account only if you have a copy of this report.
The police report is also needed to have a copy of the
fraudulent application form and other records' from these
companies.
3. Ask the cops to file a Miscellaneous Incident
Report if they say that identity theft is not a crime in your
state.
4. If the local police
doesn't help contact the county police or the state police
regarding this issue.
In some states it is necessary for
the state police to make note of identity theft and to report
the same, this can be checked by visiting the State Attorney
Generals office or by visiting www.naag.com.
What do thieves do with a stolen
identity?
Some of the ways that this personal information
is used are:
Credit Care
Fraud: The fraudsters may acquire credit cards in your name
and do shopping and spend the money on it and once the bills
are not paid it get reflected on your credit report. By
changing your billing address they may send these bills to
some other location. By doing this they will continue spending
the money on your credit card and by the time you realize that
something is wrong it is too late and you may have to pay all
the bills.
Phone or Utilities
Fraud: Using your personal information they may open or
transfer a phone or a cellular connection. They will make full
use of this phone and run up huge bills in your name. They
might even use this information to get service like
electricity, cable TV, etc.
Bank/Finance Fraud:
1. They
may use your personal details to create fake cheque.
2.
They might even use your personal information to open up bank
accounts and then issue cheque with no money in the account.
3. They will use all the personal information to make a
fake debit or credit card and then withdraw money using it to
drain your account.
4. Another simple thing that they may do
is to take loans and credit using your name and personal
details.
Government Documents Fraud:
1. They may use
your personal information to acquire official documents and
identity proof like license etc.
2. They may use your
personal details to get various benefits that are offered by
the government.
3. They may even use your
details to file a fake tax return.
Other Frauds:
1. They may use your
personal detail and social security number to get jobs.
2.
They may use your name and other details to get various
medical facilities and also to hire a house using your name.
3. They may use your personal details when they are caught
for some kind of crime and when they escape or are not present
in the court during the hearing a warrant may be issued in
your name.
How can you find out if your identity
was stolen?
In most cases the consumers come to know about
their identity theft only when some damage is already
done.
1. The consumer may come to know about it when
recovery agencies or bill collection companies contact you to
get their bills cleared.
2. While applying for a loan, you
may realize that you loans are not being sanctioned because of
a bad credit history.
3. When you are contacted in anyway about
some service that you never took or a house you never rented
or even a job you never had.
Some of the best ways
is to keep a track on your account and bank statements and to
check your credit history on a regular basis. By doing this
you will find out about any kind of identity theft at the
earliest and restrict the damages caused.
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