How to Recover Your Stolen Identity With Confidence
Having your identity stolen is a scary experience. It leaves you feeling violated and vulnerable. It can also be time consuming to recover from identity theft. However, it's important to start recovering from your stolen identity as soon as possible. The sooner you begin the recovery process, the faster you'll recover.
An important thing to remember if you're dealing with identity theft is not to panic. Realizing that your identity has been stolen is scary. However, if you panic you could stress yourself out. You could also make poor decisions about how to recover. Your stress levels may be through the roof after your identity is stolen. Yet you need to take a step back and relax. Fortunately, there are many resources available to you to resolve the problem.
The best thing to do to overcome identity theft is to be thorough. You need to find out all the aspects of your life that may be negatively impacted by identity theft. This could include your credit history. It could also include your savings and your debt load. Then, you need to correct any problems and take back your identity. Don't overlook any aspect of your finances or identity that has been compromised.
Steps to Recovering Your Stolen Identity
There are a lot of steps to go through to recover your identity. Once an identity thief has your personal information, it can unfortunately create a lot of problems for you. That's why you need to be thorough regarding your recovery.
Below are ten steps you should to through to recover your stolen identity. It's best to go through every one of these steps if possible. You need to do what it takes to ensure that your personal information can't be used without your consent again.
It might take several hours or more of your time to go through all these recovery steps. However, you need to do these things or risk recurrences of identity theft problems.
Get in Touch With the FTC
Consumers in the United States should report any identitiy theft to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Fortunately, it's very easy to file a report with the FTC online. You can visit IdentityTheft.gov to report identity theft. You can also report identity theft by phone by calling 877-438-4338.
Reporting to the FTC can help your recovery in several ways. For one thing, the FTC can generate a recovery plan for you. Also, you'll get a copy of your report. You can use this report when you're communicating with law enforcement personnel or credit bureaus regarding the theft of your identity. This report is a form of proof of the theft of your identity.
Check Your Credit Report
Looking over your credit report is essential when you've experienced identity theft. When you look at your report, you need to scrutinize each account. You need to make sure that all the accounts on your report are really use. Be on the lookout for accounts you never opened.
Also, you want to pay attention to your credit score. If your credit score has gone down suddenly without explanation, you need to find out why. This could be a sign of unexplained spending in your name.
It's easy to check your credit report nowadays. You can use free credit reporting sites online to look at your report. With these sites, you can check your credit report without any damage to your score. You can also contact credit bureaus directly for information on your credit report.
Check Your Accounts
You should check the balances on your bank and credit accounts. Look over past purchases on these accounts. If any purchases are unexplained, you need to figure out when and where they happened. You need to let your bank or credit card company know if there are unauthorized charges.
Hopefully, you have accounts with banks and credit card companies who will credit your account back for unauthorized purchases. You should not have to pay for purchases made through identity theft. However, you need to raise the red flag and let your financial institutions know. Otherwise, you will never be credited back for the costs of purchases that you did not make.
In 2019, Georgia has the highest percentage of identity theft reports per capita, and California has the highest total number of reports.
Freeze Compromised Accounts
Any account with unauthorized charges on it should be frozen. This way, the identity thief won't be able to continue making unauthorized purchases. You may need to use your accounts, so an account freeze could be inconvenient. Your financial institutions should offer you a solution to this issue. For example, they could create a new account for you to replace your compromised account.
An immediate account freeze prevents further purchases. You need to talk with a representative from your banks and credit card companies to find out how they handle account freezes.
Put Out a Fraud Alert
Putting out a fraud alert is another essential step in overcoming identity theft. You put a fraud alert on your credit report to prevent identity thieves from opening more accounts in your name. When you've got a fraud alert on your credit report, financial institutions need to contact you directly before opening an account in your name.
There are numerous fraud alert options available to consumers. A basic fraud alert will last for only one year. However, some consumers opt for extended fraud alerts. These can stay on your report for as long as seven years. Extended fraud alerts increase credit report security well into the future. They are a good idea if there are unauthorized accounts opened in your name on your report.
File a Report With the Police
Credit, Debt, Savings etc. - All in One Place
You should file a report with the police if you've experienced identity theft. It's true that the perpetrator most likely is not located in your locality. This makes it unlikely that your local police will succeed in catching the identity thief. However, having a police report regarding the issue is still valuable. A police report serves as further proof that you have experienced identity theft. Reporting to local law enforcement is an especially good idea if the theft of your identity resulted from a stolen wallet and identification documents.
In addition to getting a police report, you might also want to file a complaint with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center. Providing information about identity theft to the FBI is important. This information can help the FBI to track incidents of identity theft and hopefully locate the perpetrators.
Dispute Fraudulent Activity
Preventing further unauthorized activity under your identity is essential. However, once you have done this you need to focus on disputing unauthorized activity that has already occurred.
You need to dispute unauthorized transactions with your bank and credit card companies. Go over unauthorized transactions one by one with a representative from your financial institution. Be firm about being credited for these purchases. Your financial institution should be making efforts to prevent fraudulent purchases. They should also credit you for any purchase on your account that you didn't authorize.
You also need to dispute fraudulent activity with the credit bureaus. You do not want fraudulent activity on your report because it could unfairly bring down your credit score. Contact credit bureaus directly to find out how to begin the dispute process.
Get New Identification Documents if Necessary
Many consumers dealing with identity theft have had their identification documents stolen. This could include your driver's license, social security card, passport, and more. If your identification documents have been stolen, you need to replace them.
You can replace your driver’s license by visiting your local DMV. To replace your passport, you'll need to contact the Department of State. There is a special form you need to fill out to report a stolen passport and request a new one. You need to contact the Social Security Administration to replace your social security card.
Reset All of Your Passwords
Any time you're dealing with identity theft, you should reset passwords. It's a good idea to reset every single password you have. You should reset not just bank and credit account passwords, but also email and social media passwords. This is an important thing you need to do to protect your identity online.
Continue to regularly check your credit report and accounts in the future. We rely on the Internet a great deal nowadays. Most of our online accounts provide access to sensitive information. That's why you should go through all your passwords and reset them with a secure new password.
When you've gone through the previous nine steps, you're not yet finished. You still need to continue the vigilance if you want to completely recover from identity theft. This means routinely checking your accounts and credit report for unauthorized activity.
A lot of consumers don't fully recover from identity theft because they become complacent. This opens them up to further identity issues down the road. Unfortunately, identity theft is not a problem that can be solved overnight. It can take years of continued vigilance to completely recover from severe instances of identity theft.
Tips to Speeding Up the Recovery Process
Fortunately, there are some things you can do to make it faster to recover from a stolen identity. The more informed you are, the faster you can recover. Also, the more effort you put into it, the faster and the more complete your recovery can be.
Here are four things to keep in mind to bounce back from identity theft faster.
1. Get started ASAP
As previously mentioned, getting started quickly is key. Don't put off identity theft recovery tasks. You need to get started immediately. Identity theft is a problem that has a kind of a snowball effect. Problems and security breaches regarding your information build on one another. The longer identity thieves have, the bigger the mess they can create for you. Don't give identity thieves added time to make unauthorized charges or open accounts in your name.
2. Determine how your identity was stolen
To overcome a stolen identity, it helps to understand how it was stolen. When you figure out how your identity was stolen, you know more about what information has been compromised. This can help you target your recovery plan depending on the type of information you've had stolen. For example, you can focus on Internet security if you know your identity was stolen through an online account.
3. Develop a detailed recovery plan
Having a plan helps you to pinpoint damages and the necessary action to take. You can get a free recovery plan when you report your identity theft to the FTC. Getting a plan and using it can help you recover faster from identity theft. You can use your plan as a checklist. Go down this checklist and you don't risk overlooking an important step in identity theft recovery.
4. Check reports from all three credit bureaus
Don't limit credit report checking to just one or two credit bureaus. To be thorough, you need to view your credit report information from all three credit bureaus.
The three credit bureaus in the US are Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Each of these credit bureaus could have slightly different information on your report. That's why it's so important to check reports from all three bureaus. This is the best way to make sure you've discovered all unauthorized activity under your identity.
Preventing a stolen identity down the road
If you've experienced identity theft, it's a good sign that you need to take precautions to protect your identity. While it's impossible to completely get rid of identity theft risk, there are some things you can do to make your identity more secure.
One thing you can do to secure your identity is to learn about services from ID protection companies. Many companies out there offer services that help with identity theft prevention. These services could involve monitoring your accounts and credit reports for unauthorized activity.
You can also protect your identity in the future by being careful about what documents you're carrying with you. Avoid carrying important documents like your passport with you when it's not necessary. Also, avoid carrying unnecessary financial information with you when it's not needed.
You can also prevent future identity theft by protecting your computer from viruses and using strong passwords. Change passwords for online accounts regularly to maximize security.
Use this information to start taking back your stolen identity today. Again, acting quickly is important. It is no doubt a big headache to deal with identity theft. However, you'll make the problem worse by not taking action. Your stolen identity will continue to create problems until you fix things.
How to Know Your Identity has Been Stolen
Consumers need to know how to recognize it when their identity has been stolen. There are numerous signs that show someone has succeeded in stealing your identity. You should always be on the lookout for them. Again, the sooner you react to identity theft, the less damage there will be.
Credit report irregularities
It's common for a consumer to first notice identity theft by seeing unfamiliar items on their credit report. For example, an identity thief may have opened up a credit card in the victim's name. Becoming aware of identity theft is one of the most important reasons why you need to check your credit report regularly.
Stolen identification documents
There are other possible signs of identity theft. You should be especially vigilant for these signs if your wallet has been stolen. If someone gets a hold of your personal documents like your driver's license, they will have key information that could help them steal your identity.
Missing or unexplained bills
Your identity may have been stolen if you are not receiving your bills normally. Another sign of identity theft is bills that are coming to you for items you didn't buy. You might also be an identity theft victim if purchases you didn't make are being charged to your bank or credit accounts.
If you notice any of these signs, you need to get to the bottom of the problem as soon as possible.
Final thoughts
By going through the steps mentioned above, you can overcome identity theft. You might need to have a freeze on your credit report for an extended length of time. This freeze will have an immediate effect. You will also need to pay special attention to identity theft issues in the future.
After you have gone through the necessary steps, it's good to focus on preventing theft of your identity in the future. You don't want to go through the same problems again. Once your identity has been stolen, you might find yourself the target of identity theft again if your recovery isn't thorough and complete enough. To complete your recovery, you should start putting more time and effort into identity protection.