9 Things To Do When Your Identity Stolen

4 Dec 2007

You might find out that you’ve been a victim of identity theft through a call from a collection agency claiming you have a debt or if you were denied a credit due to a poor credit score.

It's estimated that as many as 12 million Americans fall victims of identity theft each year.

Here are the steps you need to take as soon as you discovered that you are part of the above statistics.

Notify one of the Credit Reporting Companies, Experian, Equifax, or TransUnion that you being a victim of identity theft. When you notify one, it will notify the other two for you.
Establish fraud alerts.
1. A fraud alert means that every time a creditor wants to check your credit report, it will need to call you. A fraud alert will be effective for 90 days.
Instruct the credit bureaus to block information about the fraudulent accounts from future reports.
Also ask them to remove inquiries that appeared due to fraudulent requests.
Credit bureaus also allow you to request a freezing of your credit report which means no one will be able to access it. The security freeze is free to victims of identity theft in most states.
Report the crime to your local police department and FTC (Federal Trade Commission)
If you credit report shows fraudulent accounts, contact the creditors and notify them of the identity theft.
If a bill collector contacted you regarding a fraudulent account, inform it that you are a victim of identity theft, and ask for their address. You will need to send them a fraud affidavit that will tell that you are not responsible for the account and that account needs to be closed.
Check if you are missing any ATM or Credit cards. If yes, report the lost cards to your creditors.

To avoid being a victim of identity theft, know how your personal information could be stolen and exercise caution when displaying, publishing, and otherwise giving out your private data.

How your information might get into wrong hands:

Your mail could be stolen from a mailbox.
If you don’t have a habit of shedding sensitive information before putting into trash, your bank statements might be available to a “dumpster diver”
Lost or stolen wallets, credit and ATM cards.
Trojan horses and other viruses might steal information from your computer.
Your personal data might be stolen from a company you have business with.
Other pieces of information such as your phone number, date of birth, and address might be picked up from social network websites such as Facebook, Bebo, MySpace, hi5 and others.

For more information on how to deal with identity theft visit http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/idtheft/

Send to a Friend

Bookmark this page:

Comments

Rating: +3

LadyRose - 11 Dec 2007

I have a important question, what if you have done everything mention above and some, and still being harrassed ,what if they caught the person who stole your identity,and your still be hound by the ones that claims,you owe them money, what if you done all that was asked of ya,but than you was called a lair and laughed at and ignored, and being threated to be sued..

whats the next step, when you can't even afford a attorney.

Ladyrose

Rating: +2

wathoo - 9 Jan 2008

You need to go to your local Social Security and take to information stating the identity theft. Feel out the paperwork for a new social security number. They allow a new number to those with your problem. They won't tell you that because they want you to suffer with higher interest rates and such. Corporate dogs... Once you have your new ssn call your valid creditors and have them transfer account over to new number. Old Number will become inactive and you should be fine.

Rating: -2

Joe - 12 Mar 2008

Can we trust this information? What grade did you complete? Your spelling is incorrect and word usage wrong..... "Feel" out the paperwork? Sounds like a 'slick' deal to me or even another scam!!!

Rating: -2

mictactical@yahoo.com - 28 Mar 2008

typing well doesnt make you educated. Just means you spent more lame time on a computer while spending daddy and mommys money in your dorm.

Rating: 0

Tell it like it is!~ - 6 Jun 2008

Your a idiot, as long as you get the proper information to help you when this occurs that should be the most important factor here. IF you can't take the information without being RUDE than get off this message board.

Rating: +2

Ann - 15 Apr 2008

This person is right. I know this for sure. You can also verify this information on the Social Security Administrations website. Getting a new SSN is not easy, but it can be done. The Social Security Administration does not hand them out without good reason. You must provide adequate documentation supporting the identify theft and show that you have done everything in your power to prohibit additional theft issues. Sometimes these criminals just won't stop. By the way Joe, just because the person who wrote the original message cannot spell doesn't mean that they do not know what they are talking about.

Rating: +1

bb - 6 Feb 2008

I am dealing with ID theft right now through paypal. And so far everyone i have talked to, including EQUIFAX is when they do call you harrassing you for the supposed $ you owe is to tell the to ceast and desist from calling you. That will make them from not calling you again... hope that helps.

Rating: -1

bev - 6 Apr 2008

Check with your local Legal Aid group. Call your city hall or country courthouse to find if you have one.

Second, DON'T TALK WITH THEM! You are under no obligation to talk with anyone. As soon as they call, don't say a word, just hang up. Do that enough time and they will eventually give up.

Third, tell them to either file suit or shut up.

I'm on Social Security and got some calls such as you're getting. I told them "I do not owe the bill you are trying to collect. I only have social security. So, under legal counsel I am telling you to either sue me or shut up. You may not call me again," and hang up.

You don't have to have an attorney to say that, but that is what an attorney will tell you to do...that's what I did and I never got another call, nor did they sue me.

A word about suits: All it does is give the collecting agency the "right" to get money from you, but if you don't HAVE it, they cannot collect.

Rating: +2

pennyfmhvn - 13 Apr 2008

LadyRose:
I suggest you file a complaint with the FTC. You can find the form through http://www.ftc.gov. You can also file a complaint with your state Attorney General. Just type in Attorney General and your state in a search box in your browser. Keep a record by writing down all the times they call (the time and date) and if possible get a name of the person calling and the company name. By law they are required to tell you who they are. Also make sure you put in your reports that they are threatening you and what they are saying. There are huge fines for them violating the Fair Debt Collection Act. I would also make sure to file disputes on your credit reports to have the stuff taken off there as well. Hope all this helps. If they don't stop, keep filing complaints. I've had to do this myself.

Rating: +2

Lisa - 11 Dec 2007

Send them a certified return receipt letter requesting that they ceast and desist from calling you. Also ask them to valdiate the debt. Tell them to sent you all the contracts with your signature where you opened the account. Give them thirty days. If they do not send what you want, then send a letter to all three credit bureaus along with copies of the letter you sent them and a copy of the return receipt and have the bureaus remove the debt from your credit. It's time consuming but it works.

Rating: +1

BB - 26 Mar 2008

Hi

I was a victim last March 2007 and it lasted for months. Not only was my American Express card victimized they got the subsequent numbers too. Why? Amex only changes the last few digits and I complained to Amex that any person who used the card would be able to figure the new ones. I finally had to change all my billing and phone to new information so that the people who were using my numbers could not get authorization any longer. I did that not Amex. I ended up paying too as Amex who still paid fraud items (even across seas) and in states I do not live in went after me. I no longer have them and would never have them again as a credit card. My ex bank was also tagged and I told them not to pay anything etc. I had over 900.00 in my checking account and then one day they want me to pay them 1800.00 (mostly bounced check fees) I want an accounting and they will not give it to me. They know about the id theft but want to make a deal with me. Guess what banks do not hold you harmless despite the claims you hear. I am not paying them and frankly I am just now getting caught up. So I decided no credit cards for me. What I would like to ask is can I still notify the credit agencie like equifax? I cannot remember if I notified them now, I think I did I notified the police and the federal agency etc. Is a year to the day almost but is it still too late?

By the way, I used to laugh at a co-worker for buying id theft protection. He had it up to $50,000.00. He has had it for years and when I get situated again, I will be doing the same. Just cannot afford the premiums right now.

Rating: 0

rosequeen - 16 Dec 2007

Another important tip is to NEVER email personal information in reply to the scam emails that claim you won a lottery you never entered or offer you a fabulous job doing data entry work. They are most likely foreigners trying to get you to wire them money after you cash their fake money order or check. They will probably try to steal money from your bank account or open up accounts under your social security number.

Also if you are selling something via classified ads be VERY careful in doing business with people who call you through IP Relay. The IP Relay service is supposed to be for people who are deaf or hard of hearing, however, foreigners use it to perpetrate the scams I mentioned. Be nice to the IP Relay operators, but don't sell your stuff to the scammers. Just hang up.

Rating: +2

vixinya - 15 Feb 2008

i second that. i used to work as an ip relay operator. i can't talk about the phone calls but i can say that the operator is just doing their job and relaying messages for the supposed hard of hearing. and if you're wondering why they can't hang up when they think it's a scam instead of putting the call through to you, it's because our constitutional rights protect us, but also protect them. funny loop hole huh? not all ip relay calls are scams. many are valid, and many of those valid calls are ignored because of the scams being used through their lines of communication.

Rating: 0

joelimcc - 6 Feb 2008

call your state legislators and demand that Identity theftissues are brought before the house of congress to get stronger laws to support you in #1strong penalty towards the theif #2 guidlines for the fruadlent debt collector to follow #3 safety tips consumers can follow for prevenative theft.

Rating: 0

teachr14206 - 7 Feb 2008

I have an elderly relative in her 90s who had her identity stolen, to open several credit accounts that were never paid a penny, by her own niece! This woman was "helping" her with her bills & shopping etc. Adult Protective Services will do NOTHING about this...WTF good are they? All they did was take over her Social Security check & become her payee & dole out her own money to her in dribs & drabs now, because their take on it is that she's "incapable of handling her own finances because she allowed her niece to rip her off". I don't see how trusting that your own niece won't screw you over translates to "allowed", certainly she was unaware her niece had done this until the collection agencies found her. Because she is all but deaf, I tried to help her out by calling these collection agencies & explaining about the identity theft. They were all asked to validate the debt & not one of them did it. Unfortunately, I made the calls from my own home phone & you guessed it...now they are harassing ME for these "debts" with their stupid recordings! It's like they are deliberately obtuse & don't understand English. They'll never get her on the phone because of her deafness, but they continue to fill up her mailbox & call me about this. How do I get these people off my back & hers when even Adult Protective Services refuses to do something as simple as contact the credit bureaus & file a police report on the behalf of an elderly disabled person?

Rating: 0

Marge - 28 Mar 2008

I WOULD BE VERY SUSPICIOUS THAT THE PEOPLE AT YOUR APS MIGHT BE DOING SOMETHING SIMILAR TO WHAT YOUR NIECE DID!!!
I don’t mean to be cynical, but that Adult Protective Services (APS) thing sure sounds fishy to me! Are you absolutely sure your elderly relative is actually eventually receiving her WHOLE SS check, either deposited into her account(s) or in cash? What about the interest on that money? Is APS (or one of their workers) somehow getting it, or is your relative?

What your elderly relative’s niece did was a CRIME. Has no-one reported THAT to local law enforcement? If not, WHY NOT? & DO IT NOW!
I am not an attorney, but I am an RN & worked for over a decade with another RN who is also a JD. We worked with legal matters every day in a very large publicly funded healthcare organization in AZ. According to what she taught me during that time, it is my understanding that no person can be proclaimed/declared incompetent except by a court of law, because it obviously involves taking away some very important personal rights. I would think that goes for APS too. I doubt a judge would disagree with you about your relative’s capabilities. Advanced age and hearing loss are NOT enough. Neither is being the victim of identity theft because you trusted your own niece to help you. Here is a legal definition of ‘incompetent’:

“adj. 1) referring to a person who is not able to manage his/her affairs due to mental deficiency (low I.Q., deterioration, illness or psychosis) or sometimes physical disability. Being incompetent can be the basis for appointment of a guardian or conservator (after a hearing in which the party who may be found to be incompetent has been interviewed by a court investigator and is present and/or represented by an attorney) to handle his/her person and/or affairs (often called ‘estate’)”. (from http://dictionary.law.com/default2.asp?selected=925&bold=||||) “The word incompetent is also used to describe persons who lack mental capacity to make contracts, handle their financial and other personal matters such as consenting to medical treatment, etc. and need a legal guardian to handle their affairs.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Competence_%28law%29).

So, if your relative is supposedly incompetent to handle her own affairs, who is your relative’s LEGAL GUARDIAN?
Someone, either your elderly relative herself, or someone to whom she had given power of attorney, had to have signed over your elderly relative’s Social Security to APS & ALLOWED them to become her SS payee. If those things did not happen, I think you MAY need to file a police report against APS, and maybe also get an attorney. Have you contacted Social Security? If not, you should be able to find out HOW APS got to be your relative’s SS payee. (You will need her SS# & legal authority to access her information. If you don’t have that, does someone else in your family? Also you might be able to get a lawyer for free or cheap (as attorneys go) through your state’s Legal Services (“Legal Aid”). This is the URL for the official national organization, “LSC”, which manages Legal Aid: http://www.lsc.gov/.

“The Congress of the United States entrusts the Legal Services Corporation with a dual mission: to promote equal access to justice and to provide high-quality civil legal assistance to low-income Americans.” (http://www.lsc.gov/about/lsc.php)

You can search for legal assistance in your state here: http://www.rin.lsc.gov/rinboard/rguide/pdir1.htm

As for the harassment you’re getting & what to do about it, there is a good article with links to other good information on this subject right here on this website at http://800notes.com/articles/Article.aspx/KBN5c2IZiAC_wQjKBNRWFA.

Hope this helps. Send me an email if you'd like & let me know how things are going: Puppy.Luv_66@yahoo.com. For you low-life spammers, I hardly ever use this email account & all spam is reported to the feds.
Good luck!

Rating: 0

pennyfmhvn - 13 Apr 2008

File complaints with the FTC and the Attorney General in your state. You can do this through the Internet. I had to do this with a bank that kept calling me looking for my daughter. She and I both kept telling them not to call my number as she no longer lives with me, but they continued to call 12 or so times a day, every day, and harass me. So I wrote down all the times they called and what days. Then I reported them to both agencies by filing the complaints and the calls stopped. The government will fine them heavily.

Rating: +1

George - 15 Apr 2008

I had a similar situation happened to my mother-in-law. Her grandson was the financial abuser. He lived with her and opened credit card accounts, got a cell phone, asked for money all the time and even wrote checks forging the signature of my mother-in-law. None of this was discovered until she passed away. At that time we discovered that he had not paid the cell phone bill in three months and that there were a number of credit cards he had maxed out and changed the address to another state so the past due bills would no longer come to her house. The credit card companies had his cell phone number and it was turned off so my mother-in-law never received any phone calls. It turns out that my sister-in-law, the grandson's mother, was fully aware of what was going on. My mother-in-law knew too because she had seen some of the bills, but my sister-in-law convinced her to not file a police report, etc., because it would mess up her son's life. My mother-in-law continued to allow the grandson to stay with her and he continued to steal money, etc. from her until she died.

Rating: 0

Ann - 15 Apr 2008

Your relative probably doesn't realize it, but they probably signed something giving Adult Protective Services the right to handle her money. They are only trying to protect the woman. The neice abused her relationship once already and could easily do it again. The neice could have been taking money in addition to using her information to obtain fraudulent credit accounts.

Ask the collection agencies, etc., to send your relative forgery affidavits for her to complete that state the charges were fraudulent. Most will also require you to submit a copy of a police report along with the affidavit. They have the right to collect a debt and can call you daily unless you have filed bankruptcy.

I suspect you are not getting the entire story from your relative. As in many cases, they do not want to mess up the life of the neice by filing a police report. Doing so would more than likely cause the neice some legal problems and may cause hard feelings with other members of the family. Yes, it was wrong and the girl should be prosecuted. Even if a police report is filed, the police must have hard evidence that the neice did this unknowingly to your relative and that the relative did not consent.

Good luck.

Rating: -1

Tina - 18 Feb 2008

My Husband I have been victims of ID theft and creid card fraud. It was his daughter who did it. Law isn't any good. A few months in prison and she's out doing all it again. She's been to prison 5 times for the same theft and fraud. She's still doing it.
It's been real rough tring to get any Govt. agency or law enforcment to do anything. Just have to keep calling the credit reporting agencies and keep putting fraud alert on our credit.

1 2

Post a comment about this article:

Your Name

Your name or nickname as you would like it to appear in the title of your post.

Message

Validation Code

Type the characters you see in the picture.

Site Menu

Search Phone Number