The FTC can refer victims’ complaints to other government agencies and companies for further action, as well as investigate companies for violations of the laws the agency enforces. In addition, you may have trouble obtaining government benefits, and you may be held liable in civil suits or criminal cases for motor vehicle incidents. In addition, the investigation may result in filing of criminal charges and administrative sanctions against the offender. Even if a thief only accesses a small amount of your personal information, they may be able to steal your identity if they can find out more about you from public sources. This crime, known as «new account fraud,» often costs businesses and consumers a significant amount of time and money because it takes much longer to discover and correct than «existing account fraud.» Don’t let this happen to you! Shred all bills and records you no longer need that contain personal identifying information.
Stay informed by checking the company’s website or contacting them for more information. The website is in the letter. A thief could search for information anywhere, like stealing credit cards, using public records or even to the point of rummaging in trash bins. Be sure to always store and properly dispose of documents and files that have sensitive personal information and ask questions before sharing your personal information. Without your knowledge, spyware runs in the background while it records your Internet browsing habits and keystrokes, monitors the programs you use and collects your personal information, which can lead to credit card fraud and online identity theft. Send this information, return receipt requested, to the creditors. The thieves skip out on the bills, and creditors unknowingly pursue the victims and destroy their credit in the process. Creditors and Accounts. If you learn that an account has been misused or opened fraudulently in your name, contact the business as soon as possible to report the misuse and dispute any charges or transactions that you did not make. Contact your local police and file a police report.
Taxes. File your taxes early before a scammer can. Even normal browsing activities like clicking on an enticing ad or filling out a form for downloadable content can lead to online identity theft when users don’t know what to look for. Topics/Victims/IDTheft) that explain the different types of identity theft and reviews steps you can take to prevent identity theft. It’s a good idea to keep a written record of each call you make, noting the date and time as well as the name of each person you speak with and any instructions they give you so you can take the next steps. When an identity thief gets a traffic ticket, the thief may give his or her victim’s information to police. Give the agency copies of your documents. File a police report with your local law enforcement agency and keep a copy of that report. File a police report.
File a tax return using your Social Security number in order to claim your refund. In many cases you won’t know if someone is using your ID to open up a credit card until the bill comes in the mail. If you do not receive your bank or credit card statement in the mail on time, call the issuer to make sure they are being sent to the correct address. Criminals will also have your mail forwarded to a different address by completing a change of address form. That means you will need to temporarily lift the freeze in order to apply for new credit. Because different credit issuers may use different credit reporting agencies, you will need to freeze your credit report with each of the three major credit reporting agencies. Each of the three credit reporting agencies has its own process for taking credit freeze requests. Reporting identity theft and the steps to recovery can be complex and emotionally taxing.