Are You a Victim of Identity Theft? 

What are the steps I should take if I'm a victim of identity theft?

If you believe that you are a victim of identity theft, following the four steps below as soon as possible. Keep records with the details of your conversations with each agency and copies of all written correspondence. 

1. Place a fraud alert on your credit report 
2. Close accounts 
3. File report with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)  
4. File a police report  

1. Place a fraud alert on your credit reports, and review your credit reports. Fraud alerts will help prevent an identity thief from opening more accounts in your name. Legally you only need to contact 1 of the 3 credit reporting companies to place an alert. The company is required to contact the other two, but we suggest contacting all three.

2. Close the accounts that you know, or believe, have been tampered with or opened fraudulently.  Call each credit card company and speak with the security or fraud department.   Follow-up in writing, and include copies of supporting documents. It's critical to notify credit card companies and banks in writing. Send your letters by certified mail, with return receipt requested. This will allow you to document what the company received and when. Keep a file of your correspondence and enclosures. 

Open new accounts, using a different Personal Identification Numbers (PINs) and passwords. Avoid using easily available information like your mother's maiden name, your birth date, the last four digits of your Social Security number or your phone number, or a series of consecutive numbers.

If the identity thief has made charges or debits on your accounts, or has fraudulently opened accounts, ask the company for the forms to dispute those transactions:

3. File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission. You can file a complaint with the FTC using the online complaint form; or call the FTC's Identity Theft Hotline, toll-free: 1-877-ID-THEFT (438-4338); TTY: 1-866-653-4261; or write Identity Theft Clearinghouse, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20580. Be sure to call the Hotline to update your complaint if you have any additional information or problems. By sharing your identity theft complaint with the FTC, you will provide important information that can help law enforcement officials across the nation track down identity thieves and stop them. The FTC can refer victims' complaints to other government agencies and companies for further action, as well as investigate companies for violations of laws the agency enforces.

4. File a report with your local police or the police in the community where the identity theft took place. Call your local police department and tell them that you want to file a report about your identity theft. Ask them if you can file the report in person. If you cannot, ask if you can file a report over the Internet or telephone. See below for information about Automated Reports.
If the police are reluctant to take your report, ask to file a "Miscellaneous Incident" report, or try another jurisdiction, like your state police. You also can check with your state Attorney General's office to find out if state law requires the police to take reports for identity theft. Check the Blue Pages of your telephone directory for the phone number or check www.naag.org for a list of state Attorneys General.

Whether you have been a victim of identity theft or would like to protect yourself, I have a couple of companies that I highly recommend; LockLife and Identity Truth.

Visit these pages to find more information about each of these highly rated companies.

Don't wait until you are a victim of idenity theft
PREVENT IT!

LockLife

Identity Truth