Identity Theft Fraud Report Agency Credit Reports In general, your credit report has four components: Identifying information, such as your name, Social Security number, current and previous addresses, telephone number, birth date, and employer. This information helps ensure that your credit report is accurate and doesn't mistakenly include details about another person (perhaps someone with the same name). Public record information, generally gathered from local courthouses, including bankruptcy records, foreclosures, tax liens, court-ordered payments, and late child-support payments. This information is used to determine if you have previous defaults or legal judgments against you. For example, a mortgage lender will want to know if you've had a past foreclosure before granting a home loan. Derogatory information can generally remain on your credit report for up to seven years, except for bankruptcy information, which may be reported for 10 years. Other credit history information, such as a list of your credit cards and loans, and whether payments were on time. Here, too, negative information about your credit relationships, such as late payments or defaults, will remain on your report for up to seven years, and bankruptcy information may appear on your report for 10 years. "Inquiries," a section of your report that lists the creditors, insurance companies or other parties that have requested your credit report, usually when considering an application you submitted. Inquiries typically can remain on your credit report for two years Free Annual Credit Reports The three nationwide consumer reporting companies (credit bureaus) have set up one central website, toll-free telephone number, and mailing address through which you can order your free annual report. To order, click on www.annualcreditreport.com, call 877-322-8228, or complete the Annual Credit Report Request Form and mail it to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281. The form can be printed from www.ftc.gov/credit. Do not contact the three nationwide consumer reporting companies individually. They are only providing free annual credit reports through www.annualcreditreport.com, 877-322-8228, and Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281. Credit Card Fraud As soon as you realize you are a victim of credit card fraud, you should: Contact the three major credit reporting agencies to notify them of the problem and provide as much evidence as you have. Ask them to log the theft and remove the fraudulent information from your credit record. call Equifax at (800) 525-6285, Experian at (888) 397-3742, and Trans Union at (800) 680-7289. Request that a "fraud alert" be placed on your credit report. This will alert any credit provider to contact you before issuing a new credit card. Call and then write each agency. Trans Union, Fraud Victim Assistance Department P. O. Box 6790 Fullerton, Calif. 92834 Call (800) 680-7289. Equifax P. O. Box 740241 Atlanta, Ga. 30374-0241 Call (800) 525-6285. Experian P. O. Box 1017 Allen, Texas 75013 Call (800) 301-7195. Request a copy of your credit record from each agency. This is a free service for victims of fraud. The nearest office of the Consumer Credit Counseling Service may be able to give you advice on removing fraudulent claims from your credit report. Call 800-388-2227. After you've dealt with the credit reporting agencies, you need to deal with the credit card issuers. Call your credit card issuers to cancel your credit cards. Cancel them with the status "Account closed at customer's request." If you allow the closing status to be "Card lost or stolen" the "lost" part could place blame on you. Request new cards with different credit card numbers. Follow up in writing with the details of each card you wish canceled. Call each company that issued a fraudulent credit card to obtain a copy of the signed credit card contract. You must have this document to prove you did not authorize the issuance of the card and are therefore not responsible for the charges. You may have difficulty locating the person authorized to send you a copy of the contract, but be persistent. Follow up in writing to the address given for "billing inquiries," not the address for sending your payments. Call each company that issued a fraudulent credit card to request their procedures for handling fraudulent accounts or charges. They may require a signed affidavit of fraud, police reports, or other documents. Cooperate with these procedures to expedite their bureaucratic process. Once they acknowledge fraud, ask them to send the three credit reporting agencies a letter confirming the fraudulent activity. Notify each company that issued a fraudulent credit card that the card is, indeed, fraudulent and charges against that card are fraudulent.Continue calling each company that issued a fraudulent credit card to track their progress in their investigation. Identity Theft Protection If you are serious about protecting your credit and want identity theft coverage, you can examine Privacy Matters 1-2-3 Identity Theft Protection Service. This resource provides: Triple Bureau Credit Monitoring provides automatic alerts when activity is detected to your credit files at all three credit bureaus FREE 3-in-1 Credit Report and Triple Score — get unlimited online access to your 3-in-1 Credit Report and Triple Score, which merges your credit information and scores from all three credit reporting bureaus into one easy-to-read report Online access to FICO® Scorewatch, which automatically notifies you of changes to your FICO® score — at members-only rates Unlimited, toll-free access to Credit Report Customer Service Enroll in Identity Theft Restoration Services — at no additional cost to you Check out Privacy Matters 1-2-3 Identity Theft Protection Service today. Identity Theft - Fastest Growing Crime The U.S. Department of Justice indicates: "Identity theft and identity fraud are terms used to refer to all types of crime in which someone wrongfully obtains and uses another person's personal data in some way that involves fraud or deception, typically for economic gain. "Unlike your fingerprints, which are unique to you and cannot be given to someone else for their use, your personal data ­ especially your Social Security number, your bank account or credit card number, your telephone calling card number, and other valuable identifying data ­ can be used, if they fall into the wrong hands, to personally profit at your expense. In the United States and Canada, for example, many people have reported that unauthorized persons have taken funds out of their bank or financial accounts, or, in the worst cases, taken over their identities altogether, running up vast debts and committing crimes while using the victims's names. In many cases, a victim's losses may include not only out-of-pocket financial losses, but substantial additional financial costs associated with trying to restore his reputation in the community and correcting erroneous information for which the criminal is responsible. "In one notorious case of identity theft, the criminal, a convicted felon, not only incurred more than $100,000 of credit card debt, obtained a federal home loan, and bought homes, motorcycles, and handguns in the victim's name, but called his victim to taunt him -- saying that he could continue to pose as the victim for as long as he wanted because identity theft was not a federal crime at that time -- before filing for bankruptcy, also in the victim's name. While the victim and his wife spent more than four years and more than $15,000 of their own money to restore their credit and reputation, the criminal served a brief sentence for making a false statement to procure a firearm, but made no restitution to his victim for any of the harm he had caused. This case, and others like it, prompted Congress in 1998 to create a new federal offense of identity theft." How to Stop Identity Theft Learn how to protect yourself and your family today . Even though you cannot ever be fully immune, there are steps that you can take to greatly reduce the risk of becoming a victim. Identity Theft Costs Americans over 5 Billion Dollars a year, affecting approximately 4.7% of the population with an average loss per victim of $10,000. Packed full of information, this book is a must read for everyone. Complete with a special section for victims to direct them to the help resources they most need. See all the details about Don't Let This Happen to You today. Credit Monitoring / Identity Theft Protection Immediate Notification of New Credit Accounts Almost 10 million U.S. consumers said they were victims of identity theft during the last reporting year, according to a Federal Trade Commission study released in September, 2003.* Notify Express credit monitoring and alerts are a fast, convenient way to keep track of your information and detect the early signs of fraudulent activity and identity theft. Notify Express can alert you to identity theft before it ruins your good credit. If a thief starts tampering with your information, Notify Express will alert you that there's a change to your file. Notify Express monitors your credit files at Equifax, Experian and TransUnion and promptly notifies you of changes so you can act quickly — if you suspect fraudulent activity. The following items are monitored in your credit files every business day by Notify Express: Inquiries to your credit files New accounts opened New public records Address changes Changes to public records Changes to account information You can choose to receive your Notify Express alerts via e-mail, phone, mail or text messaging. If you choose to receive your alerts by mail or phone, you’ll receive them for selected changes (inquiries, new accounts opened, new public records, and address changes reported) only. However, if you choose to receive alerts via e-mail, you’ll be notified of all changes (listed above) as reported to the credit reporting agencies. * Federal Trade Commission – Identity Theft Survey Report, September, 2003 First Rate Identify Theft Insurance The CreditProtectX3 Identity Theft Insurance Program reimburses victims of identity theft for certain expenses up to $20,000 (after a $250 deductible). Expenses covered include: Lost wages (up to $500 per week for a maximum of four weeks) as a result of time taken off from work to deal with the fraud including wrongful incarceration. Lost wages must occur during the policy period. Notary and certified mailing costs for completing and delivering fraud affidavits or similar documents. Loan application fees for re-applying for loans when the original application is rejected solely because the lender received incorrect information. Long distance phone charges associated with reporting or discussing an actual identity fraud. Attorney fees incurred (with prior consent) for defending suits brought incorrectly by merchants and their collection agencies, for removing criminal or civil judgments wrongly entered against an Insured Person, and for challenging the accuracy or completeness of any information in a consumer credit report. Unlimited Access to Your Online 3-in-1 Credit Report Almost unheard of in the industry -- unlimited access to your online credit reports from all three reporting agencies. With your 3-in-1 Online Credit Report, you get unlimited online access to a consolidated report of your credit history with side-by-side data compiled from Equifax®, Experian®, and TransUnionSM. This gives you a comprehensive view of your credit history and also makes it easier for you to verify the accuracy of the information at each agency. Credit Scores from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion Your credit scores are compiled with data from Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. This provides an online snapshot of your current credit-worthiness based on an evaluation of common factors many creditors use to decide whether or not to extend credit. You'll see the positive and negative factors that impact all three scores; score comparison to the national average; and guidelines suggesting what you can do to improve your scores. (Members who choose offline delivery receive this information for their Equifax credit score only.) Online Credit Report, Credit Scores, Credit Monitoring, Identity Theft Protection Isn't it time you began to let CreditProtectX3 can help you? Order now for our special introductory rate of just $25.95 for the first three months of service, then continue to receive CreditProtectX3 for only $12.99 per month. You and your family -- not to mention your good name -- will be protected. You will feel safe and secure knowing that you have the best protection there is. Problems You Can Encounter My wallet was stolen in December 1998. There’s been no end to the problems I’ve faced since then. The thieves used my identity to write checks, use a debit card, open a bank account with a line of credit, open credit accounts with several stores, obtain cell phones and run up huge bills, print fraudulent checks on a personal computer bearing my name, and more. I’ve spent the last two years trying to repair my credit report (a very frustrating process) and have suffered the ill effects of having a marred credit history. I’ve recently been denied a student loan because of inaccurate information on my credit report. From a consumer complaint to the FTC, February 22, 2001 I’m tired of the hours I’ve spent on the phone and all the faxing I’ve had to do. When will it be over? From a consumer complaint to the FTC, March 13, 2001 Tomorrow is Sunday so we won’t get any notices, but I’m not looking forward to Monday’s mail. From a consumer complaint to the FTC, November 13, 2001 How can someone commit identity theft? The Federal Trade Commission explains how identity theft is committed: By co-opting your name, Social Security number, credit card number, or some other piece of your personal information for their own use. In short, identity theft occurs when someone appropriates your personal information without your knowledge to commit fraud or theft. Once identity theft is committed, then what? Once identity thieves fake your identity, they: Open a new credit card account, using your name, date of birth, and Social Security number. When they use the credit card and don’t pay the bills, the delinquent account is reported on your credit report. Call your credit card issuer and, pretending to be you, change the mailing address on your credit card account. Then, your impostor runs up charges on your account. Because your bills are being sent to the new address, you may not immediately realize there's a problem. Establish cellular phone service in your name. Open a bank account in your name and write bad checks on that account. More information is available here about: How to commit identity theft How to prevent identity theft Help for victims of identity theft Back to the main page of Identity Theft Computer Identity Theft Prevention How To Obtain False Documents Theft Identification Prevention Help For Identity Theft Victims Cellular Phone Identity Theft States Identity Theft Homeowner Insurance Prevent Security Theft Merchant Services Identity Theft Repair Requesting A Different Number Drivers License Id Copyright © 2004-2011 Robert Sherman