Recovering From Identity Theft

In a previous article, we looked at ways to prevent identity theft from happening to you.  However, there is no way to completely insure that it will never happen.  In this article we will address some of the things that you can do to limit the damage in case this does happen to you. 

1) Report the theft with each of the three major credit bureaus. Ask that a "fraud alert" be placed on your file. Also request that no new lines of credit be granted without first seeking your approval.  You'll be asked to record the incident(s) in writing, and include copies of any documents (e.g., a police report, correspondence with your bank or other creditors) to be used as evidence. Here's the contact information for each of the three major credit bureaus:

Equifax

(http://www.equifax.com/)

P.O. Box 740241

Atlanta, GA 30374-0241

(800) 525-6285 – To Report Fraud

Experian

(http://www.experian.com/)

P.O. Box 1017

Allen, TX 75013

(800) 301-7195 – To Report Fraud

TransUnion

(http://www.transunion.com/)

Fraud Victim Assistance Division

P.O. Box 6790

Fullerton, CA 92634

(800) 680-7289 – To Report Fraud

2) Close accounts that have been fraudulently accessed or opened. To do so, contact the security departments of the appropriate creditors or financial institutions. If you open any new accounts, put passwords on them (and don't use the obvious ones like your mother's maiden name, your Social Security number, or the name of the street you live on).

3) File a police report!  This is an important step to show that your claim is legitimate especially if there is a fraud investigation.  Make sure to get a copy of the report (or report number) in case the bank, credit card company, or others need proof of the crime. 

4) Complete an ID Theft Affidavit provided by the FTC at (http://www.consumer.gov/idtheft/affidavit.htm).  This document will help you organize and accurately record your complaint. All three major credit bureaus and most of the large lenders accept this form as notice from you. You can also call the ID Theft Clearinghouse toll-free at (877) ID-THEFT (438-4338) to report the theft.

5) If the crime involves your Social Security number, you can report the theft by calling (800) 269-0271 or visit the Social Security Administration's website (http://www.ssa.gov/).

Finally, take steps to prevent identity theft from ever happening again by implementing some of the precautions outlined in the previous article “Preventing Identity Theft”.  For more information on how to deal with credit-related ID theft, check out the ID Theft website (http://www.consumer.gov/idtheft).