What Should You Do If You Fall Victim to Identity Theft?
Identity theft is a serious crime that happens when someone uses your information without your permission. The information can be your name and address, bank account or credit card numbers, Social Security Number, utility account numbers, or medical insurance numbers.
Ways to Tell if Your Identity Is Stolen
There are different ways you can tell if someone is using your identity. You may find credit card charges you didn’t make or see withdrawals from your bank account that you didn’t make and aren’t able to explain. You may get notice from the IRS that says someone used your Social Security Number to get a job or tax refund.
You may be noticing you aren’t getting your mail or your bills, or you do get bills for medical services or utilities you didn’t actually use. You could have debt collectors calling you about debts that aren’t yours or find strange charges or accounts on your credit report. If you notice any of these things, you need to investigate further in order to check if you have been a victim of identity theft.
What You Need to Do after Identity Theft
Finding out someone stole your identity can be overwhelming and you may not know where to even begin. There are some steps to begin the process of recovering after identity theft occurs.
File a Claim with Identity Theft Insurance
If you do have an insurance plan, this is going to be your first step. Your provider should be able to guide you through the steps on how to do this. Companies such as LifeLock sell this type of protection plan but even if you haven’t purchased coverage, it’s possible that you may already have coverage through an insurer or employer. Call the insurance companies or human resources department to find out.
Notify Companies of Stolen Identity
You don’t want to wait to notify a company where there have been fraudulent transactions. Contact them immediately to alert them of an issue. Your credit card number may be compromised but the thief may not have gotten access to your personal information. You can prevent any further theft of personal information by calling the credit card issuer. If someone is already opening up accounts in your name then you need to proactively contact agencies and other companies. For example, contact the IRS if your Social Security Number was stolen and used to file an income tax return. If someone has already been impersonating you then you want to contact your health insurance company in case they try to get medical care under your policy number or name.
File a Report with the FTC
The FTC actually collects information about identity theft cases. While it doesn’t have the legal ability to pursue any criminal charges, the information can be used by law enforcement agencies to track down perpetrators. As part of the process, you then also get a recovery plan and prefilled forms and letters that you can use to dispute fraudulent charges and file a police report. Identity theft is considered impersonating another to use their information for financial grain so if it’s just a security breach with a stolen credit card number then you don’t have to report this to the FTC.
Contact the Police Department
When you file a report with the local police department, it helps protect you. It starts to create a paper trail that can be useful in the future. For example, if someone uses your information to commit a crime then having the documentation of identity theft can make resolving it much easier. The police may not be able to do anything if your identity was stolen overseas or online, but the report may be helpful if it is someone local who stole your information.
Use a Fraud Alert on Your Credit Reports
You then need to follow up with the three major credit bureaus - Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian - and have a fraud alert placed on the account. A fraud alert will stay on your credit report for a year and it will notify any institution that pulls a credit report that your identity may be compromised. The creditor will then look more closely at whoever is applying to make sure it is actually you. You will only have to request a fraud alert at one credit bureau and then the other two get notified. This is free to do.
Freeze Your Credit
If you want an extra layer of protection then you can start a credit freeze. This completely cuts off access to your credit report. The credit bureaus aren’t able to share the report with anyone that asks for it. In order to freeze your credit, you should contact each one individually. The process is free. You may also want to do this for your children, since children can be easy targets for identity theft.
Sign Up for Credit Monitoring
ID monitoring and credit monitoring may be offered to you if your information was accessed in a data breach. These identity theft services will monitor credit reports for any suspicious activity and then send you an alert when a new account is opened. If you aren’t offered this for free, you can still sign up for the services yourself.
Tighten Up Security
Make sure you start to tighten up your security before identity theft gets a chance to go any further. Many people never change their password or use the same passwords on every site. If you need help remembering your passwords, you can use a password manager. A password manager helps you generate passwords that can’t be guessed easily and then stores them on websites so you won’t have to remember each one. There are free options, as well as paid options. Don’t carry your Social Security card in your wallet and be careful when you get emails from unknown or suspicious senders. Delete your personal information, such as phone numbers an addresses, off of websites and public profiles, including social media platforms. If it is offered, you should enable two-factor authentication. This requires that you have both a password and a code delivered via phone, text, or email in order for you to access the account.
Review Credit Reports
Whether you have had your identity stolen or have been a victim of credit card fraud, it’s necessary to look over your credit reports for accounts you don’t recognize. Take advantage of the fact that you are allowed free credit reports. Once your personal information has been stolen, it’s important to note that it can be circulated and sold on the dark web. This means that it may not just be a one-time occurrence and can happen again in the future.
Scan Bank Statements and Credit Cards for Unauthorized Charges
Not only is it necessary to review your credit report, but you also need to look up your other accounts and look at the statements for other charges you don’t recognize. During this time, you don’t want to forget about infrequently used accounts. If you do find some unknown charges then call the financial institution to alert them and request that your account be closed or locked. You may want to talk with the financial institution about the best ways to avoid further damage. This may also involve closing current accounts and reopening new accounts for those that haven’t even be compromised. It can be a dreary process that may be necessary in order to avoid a thief getting control of your money in the future.
Know Your Rights When It Comes to Identity Theft
Identity theft is an overwhelming process so it’s important that you understand you do have rights.
If you are a victim of identity theft, you have the right to create a theft report with the FTC and place holds on your credit report, as well as an extended fraud alert.
You have the right to free copies of your report in order to get fraudulent information removed.
You have the right to copies of documents related to identity theft.
When it comes to debt collectors and creditors, you do have some rights there too: You have the right to stop debt collectors and creditors from reporting fraudulent accounts and to stop creditors and debt collectors from contacting you.
Communicating with debt creditors can be challenging after identity theft. After you give them the copy for the identity theft report from the FTC, they are not allowed to report fraudulent accounts. In most cases, they need to stop contacting you after you give them a written letter telling them to stop.
There are also rights and limits when it comes to financial losses. Under the law in most states, you aren’t responsible for debt incurred when there is a fraudulent new account opened without permission. Under federal law, the limit you have to pay for unauthorized use of your credit card will be limited to $50. If you have your debit or ATM card stolen then you are able to limit your liability if you report the loss immediately.
What Are the Effects of Identity Theft?
You could be affected by identity theft in several ways, depending on what type of theft occurs. One of the most damaging, but hard to quantify, is the emotional toll that happens. When you are victim of identity theft, the thief literally assumes your identity and this can be emotionally draining. They are able to do a number of things in your name and this can make you feel anxious, unsafe, and violated. In some cases, it can even be hard to prove that identity theft happened, which can lead to some frustration and anger. This stress can take a toll on your physical health. Some physical symptoms can include sleep disturbances, pains and aches, stomach issues, and heart palpitations.
Besides emotional and physical effects, there are also other effects that can happen after identity theft.
If your Social Security Number is stolen and the thief is able to open new accounts in your name and doesn’t pay for this debt then it can hurt your credit history. In most cases, the fraudster will open a new loan or credit card but it may also be a utility account or cell phone plan. With bad credit, it can impact your ability to get credit, as well as increase your insurance premiums and hurt your job opportunities.
If a thief gets your identity through your Social Security Number on job applications and doesn’t pay the taxes then you end up with a tax bill. It’s also possible that a thief could file a return in your name and submit wrong information in order to take your refund and then leave you dealing with the aftermath.
It’s possible for someone to use your identity in order to commit crimes and then, when arrested, give your information to the police. This means you could be the one that ends up with a record.
Unfortunately, it can take years to recover from identity theft and this means that you may lose more money with the expenses to fight the identity theft, time off of work, and more.
How Long Does It Take to Recover?
The answer to this also depends on what type of fraud is committed. If the thief is only able to commit credit card fraud, where someone just uses your credit card but doesn’t actually get access to more sensitive information, then the time to recover from this would be to just report it and get a new card in the mail. Other more serious forms can take longer. If you are looking for a new credit card with a different lender, below you can take a look at some of the options we would strongly recommend:
If someone steals your Social Security Number and opens up a new account then it can take months of work with credit reporting agencies to prove it wasn’t you and dispute this. If someone does manage to incur tax debt or some other crimes then it’s possible that it can take years of work to undo the damage.
Recovering from Identity Theft Quicker
Even though the time it takes to recover from identity theft can depend on the type of theft, there may be ways to recover faster and spot it before it gets much worse.
1. Learn the Signs
It may not always be possible to find out that a thief gained access to your information but there are signs you should look out for. It’s especially important to monitor your credit reports for signs. Signs that fraud has happened include incorrect information on your credit reports, notifications of unauthorized purchases, unexpected loan, credit card, or tax bills, or even a failed background check. Be sure to take these things seriously.
3. Adding Fraud Alerts or Freezing Your Credit Reports
If you catch the fraud early enough, you may be able to stop a thief in his or her tracks and restrict their ability to open new accounts. When there is a fraud alert on your account, creditors will the typically flag an application with your Social Security Number and call the number you have provided to verify your identity. A credit freeze stops creditors from being able to view your credit report.
2. Get Help
It may be easier to work with people that have the tools to track down the criminal. You will need to report it to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Federal Trade Commission, and local law enforcement. There are different tools available to help you recover from identity theft.
4. Don’t Stop
Reporting the theft is just the first step in the process. You will have to work with the police, credit reporting agencies, and creditors. You need to be your own advocate and do your best to stay on top of the whole process until it gets resolved.
Preventing Any Future Identity Theft
Dealing with the effects of identity theft can be very challenging and there are ways to prevent any future identity theft so you don’t have to do it again. A lot of what you can do to prevent identity theft is similar to the steps you need to take after identity theft when it comes to your personal information:
Be sure to avoid giving out personal information to just anyone, especially if someone calls you out of the blue.
Shred your documents that have personal information and account numbers.
Check your credit reports and score regularly for any errors or suspicious activity.
Use strong online passwords for your online banking and credit information.
Always keep an eye out on your financial accounts and consider using an identity theft protection service.
These efforts may not be able to eliminate identity theft altogether but it can limit your exposure.
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Finally,
Identity theft can be stressful and there is a lot that needs to happen afterward. However, with some work, it is possible to get your life back on track. The amount of time it’s going to take to recover from identity theft and get back on track will depend on your unique circumstances and exactly what kind of theft happened to you. Keep in mind the rights you have and the steps you should take in order to prevent any further identity theft.