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Identity
Theft
Identity Theft Is On The Rise Fast
Identity theft is the country's fastest-growing crime, and more than
9.9 million Americans were victims last year. The crimes cost a total
of $5 billion, not including lost productivity, according to the U.S.
Postal Inspection Service. The Federal Trade Commission says it received
about 250,000 identity theft complaints in 2004 alone.
Recent Identity Theft Incidents
ChoicePoint Inc., which buys and sells personal data from property records
to Social Security numbers, last month provoked consumer angst and political
ire when it revealed that information of at least 145,000 people nationwide
-- including 10,000 Floridians -- had been stolen. Investigators think
those numbers will climb.
California authorities say 500,000 people could be affected. "This
is very, very big," says Jay Foley, co-executive director of the
Identity Theft Resource Center.
In a separate incident, last week Bank of America Corp. said that it
had lost computer data tapes that contained information on 1.2 million
federal employees. The data includes Social Security numbers and other
information that could make some of the federal employees susceptible
to identity theft.
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We want to remind consumers about how devastating
this crime can be, personally and financially, and provide them
with helpful tips on how to protect themselves. ID theft occurs
when someone steals your identity by using personal data about you
such as your name, social security number, date of birth and financial
information.
Identity thieves can damage your credit and good reputation
by opening credit accounts in your name to run up charges, establish
phone, utility, or wireless service in your name and never pay the
bill, open bank accounts in your name and write bad checks, and
even use your name when committing crimes or driving offenses resulting
in warrants being issued in your name.
Warning SIgns
of identity theft
Warning signs include:
- You receive bills from a credit account you did not open.
- You see unauthorized charges on your credit, long distance,
or bank accounts.
- You are contacted by a collection agency regarding a debt you
did not incur.
- Checks disappear from your checkbook.
- Bank and credit billing statements don’t arrive on time.
- Your credit report shows accounts you did not authorize.
- You are turned down for a credit card, loan, mortgage, or other
form of credit due to unauthorized debts on your credit report.
How To Prevent Identity Theft
Identity thieves obtain information through email and the Internet,
from consumer's trash, mailbox, stolen wallets, and even from dishonest
personnel who have access to private records. To keep from becoming
a victim of identity theft, take the following preventative actions:
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- Do not give out any personal information to unsolicited
callers, email requests or other unknown solicitors.
- Shred pre-approved credit applications, credit card receipts,
bills, and other financial information you do not want before
discarding them in the trash or recycle bin. Paper
shredders may help you do this job easy.
- Promptly remove mail from your mailbox after delivery,
and do not leave outgoing mail in unsecured mail receptacles
(your mailbox).
- Never give personal information such as your Social Security
Number, date of birth, mother’s maiden name, credit
card number, or bank PIN code, over the telephone, unless
you initiated the call.
- Order your credit report from each of the three credit
bureaus at least once a year to check for fraudulent action.
- Actively monitor your credit
report and score. You will be alerted when there's any changes
to your credit report if you subscribe to credit
monitoring services.
- Memorize your Social Security Number and passwords. Do
not carry a written copy of this information in your wallet
or purse.
- Cancel unwanted credit cards and maintain a list of all
credit cards in use.
- Never loan your credit cards to someone else.
- Never put your credit card information or any other financial
account number on a postcard or on the outside of an envelope.
- Report all lost or stolen credit cards immediately.
- Use caution when disclosing checking account numbers,
credit card information, or other personal financial data
on the Internet.
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When Your Identity Has Been Stolen
If you think your identity has been stolen, here's what to do now:
- Contact the fraud departments of any one of the three major
credit bureaus to place a fraud alert on your credit file. The
fraud alert requests creditors to contact you before opening any
new accounts or making any changes to your existing accounts.
As soon as the credit bureau confirms your fraud alert, the other
two credit bureaus will be automatically notified to place fraud
alerts, and all three credit reports will be sent to you free
of charge.
- Close the accounts that you know or believe have been tampered
with or opened fraudulently. Use the ID Theft Affidavit when disputing
new unauthorized accounts.
- File a police report. Get a copy of the report to submit to
your creditors and others that may require proof of the crime.
- File your complaint with the FTC. The FTC maintains a database
of identity theft cases used by law enforcement agencies for investigations.
Filing a complaint also helps us learn more about identity theft
and the problems victims are having so that we can better assist
you.
CREDIT REPORTING bureaus
Report fraud or request a copy of your credit report by contacting
the three primary credit reporting bureaus:
- EQUIFAX
P. O. Box 740241
Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
(800) 685-1111 (order report)
(800) 525-6285 (report fraud)
- EXPERIAN
P. O. Box 2104
Allen, TX 75013-2104
(888) 397-3742
- TRANS
UNION
P .O. Box 2000
Chester, PA 19022-2000
(800) 888-4213 (request report)
(800) 680-7289 (report fraud)
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