Identity Theft: What to Do If it Happens to You

It was just before Christmas in 2004 when I received a call from Dell Computer asking if I, or a family member, had applied for a line of credit the previous day. I responded "No". I had not applied for such a thing. After a few more questions, the caller stated that someone with my social security number had tried to open a line of credit, but their credit department was tipped off because my social security number and the address given by the caller, did not match. I was very lucky, and I am very grateful to Dell, since they alerted me early on that my identity had been stolen.

The representative form Dell proceeded to tell me what I needed to do. He gave me the number for their fraud department. He told me to make a police report, and to contact the credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion, to alert them to my identity theft.

The call from Dell came on a Sunday afternoon. By Monday morning, I was on the phone with Dell's fraud department. Then, as instructed, I contacted one of the credit bureaus. When you believe your identity is stolen, and you call one of the credit bureaus, they send you a free credit report and put an automatic 90- day watch on all credit applications that will come through any of the three credit bureaus. The bureau you contact will ask for your phone number, so that any credit/loan requests will be reviewed with you first. If you want to receive your credit score, you will probably have to pay a nominal fee. Following is a list of things you need to do, once you receive your credit report in order to restore your identity.

1) When you receive your credit report, you need to review it carefully for any fraudulent activity . This activity should be recognized easily. It usually falls under the category: "Inquiries that display to companies", or "Requests viewed by others", or something similar. If your identity has been stolen, you will see companies or loan agencies that you don't recognize, and that there are lines of credit, or past due bills. In contrast, the first section of the report, the section indicating your own activity, would show recognizable credit activity. If your credit is good, the activity that belongs to you should have the current status of your purchases or loans as "Paid" or "On Time". For every inquiry, or credit request that is made by the fraudulent party, and, especially if they are given a loan or credit card for purchases that are not paid on time, your credit rating will be reduced.

2) Check your personal information on the credit report very carefully. You will really know that your identity has been stolen when you see on the report that your address is different and your date of birth. In my case, I was 20 years younger, and had four different addresses. This can be quite scary.

2) Once you note unrecognizable loans or credit activity, you must contact every company, bank, or other loan agency that is not familiar to you. There is usually a phone number listed next to the company. When you call the company, ask for the fraud department and explain that you believe your identity has been stolen. After asking you some questions, they may be able to give you information about the person who applied for credit. It may actually be someone of the opposite sex, as in my case. The company should open up an inquiry on your behalf, and you should request a copy of the application made in your name to give to the police.

3) The credit bureaus also need specific information about what is incorrect on your report. There will be pages included in your credit report where you can correct the information and send it back to them. However, the only information they will usually correct in this manner is your address and possibly your date of birth. In order to restore your credit, however, you will need to contact the companies themselves as mentioned in #2. Those institutions who granted the credit lines must be informed by you that a fraud was committed and notify the credit agencies to remove past due notices, etc.

4) Once you have evidence of identify theft on your credit report, and you have begun contacting companies who gave credit to the identity thieves, you should make a report with the police. In many police stations, there is a detective who deals in identity theft. When I contacted my local police station in 2004, identity theft in Brooklyn had become so rampant, that there was special detail on this crime. I brought my credit report, and proof of my identity. They filled out a report on the matter, gave me a copy, and copied the relevant information from the credit report. As I received information from the companies who provided loans to the identity thieves, I faxed the detective this information.

5) You may receive calls from the credit bureaus during the 90-day watch period asking if you applied for credit through various venues. This is good and bad news. The good news is that the credit bureaus are doing their job in protecting you from further theft. The bad news is that the identity thief is still working your identity. If you get a call, let the credit bureau know that you are aware your identity was stolen, that you have gone to the police, and request that they send you the actual loan application so that you could forward it to the police. If they cannot send you a copy of the application, ask them for some type of correspondence indicating that someone tried to use your identity to secure a loan. During the automatic 90-day watch on my credit, I received two calls from agencies notifying me that someone tried to obtain a line of credit. In both cases, the agencies sent me the application, and it was from this information that I learned the name of the identity thief. This was immediately forwarded to the detective.

6) Obviously, a 90-day credit watch is not sufficient to prevent you from on-going identity theft. You need to obtain a 7 year watch on your credit. In order to do this, you must send the credit bureaus the following:

- You should write a detailed letter to each credit bureau outlining how and when you discovered your identity was stolen, and note that you want to institute the 7 year credit watch. You should list the companies or agencies that have outstanding debt in your name, but from which you never took a loan or been given a credit card. At the end of the letter, you should state that, considering your identity was stolen, you would like your credit rating immediately restored. You should request that the fraudulent activity be removed from the credit statement, and ask that a revised credit statement be sent to you as soon as possible.

- You need to attach to this letter a copy of your social security card, your driver's license, a current bill that has your correct address, the police report, and any letters / information from the companies who provided loans or credit cards to the identity thief. (Once you have spoken to these companies or agencies, they should send you a letter informing you that they recognize your identity has been stolen, and that they are rectifying the situation. Such letters should be enclosed with your letter to the credit bureaus.)

- You should also attach to the letter a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) affidavit, that you will complete and have witnessed as to your identity. You can print this form from the Federal Trade Commission website.

- All of this information should be sent to each credit bureau via registered mail, so that you know it was received. You may have to wait about two months before you receive your corrected credit report. The report should look much better, and, once the fraudulent activity is removed from the report, your credit rating will increase. My credit rating had gone down to 585 at one point, and then came up near 730, when there was still one item on the report. It took 18 months from the time I was first notified to when I finally saw the appropriate corrections on my credit report. Once each company and agency rectifies the fraudulent activity, any reference to that activity will disappear from the credit report.

I was very lucky that only $400 in purchases was made in my name. However, several lines of credit were given to the identity thief, and because of the call from Dell, I was able to attack the problem before any further money was spent. Today, unless you apply for a mortgage, or other loan, or a new credit card, you will probably not know if your identity has been stolen. It is good practice to review your credit report at least once a year to ensure that all of the activity is valid.

As you have probably heard and read many times, be careful in using your credit card, and giving any personal information to companies and individuals with whom you are not familiar. However, everyone's social security number is in so many places, that there are many opportunities for fraud. Job applications, health insurance forms, personnel files, are only some sources from which your identity can be stolen. Once your identity is stolen, you can see how much work you'll need to do to restore your identity. The key is to attack it fast and hard, keep a file of every credit report, and every bit of information you receive from the agencies and companies you contact to report the fraud. You may need to send information out several times, so every bit of information is important.

Visit the Federal Trade Commission website, not only for a copy of the affidavit form, but also for important information on identity theft.