What to Do when Identity Theft Occurs

If you have previously had your identity information stolen then you will need to take some adequate measures in order to ensure that no more accounts remain open and that steps can effectively be taken in order to rectify and improve your current situation. The very first thing that you will want to do is to apply a fraud alert on your credit reports. You can do this by calling one of the three reporting agencies (a call to one means that all will be alerted), Equifax, Experian or TransUnion. Let them know that you have been the victim of identity theft and to make sure to contact you if they find anymore irregular movement on your credit report.

The next thing that you will need to do is to contact your local police department and report the theft. You will also need to provide them with the information on the accounts that were fraudulently opened or stolen. You will need to take this step quite fast as many creditors might hold you responsible for these accounts, though they might have been fraudulently opened under your name. A police report carefully filed will contribute towards demonstrating that a crime has occurred and that you are working towards recovering any lost or stolen information.

You will then be required to close the accounts that were opened in your name. Because there might have been an increase in identity theft over the past ten years, you will only need to call the company fraud department (don't speak with customer service or an account representative). You might, in some cases, also need to write a letter to each company stating the same request that you did on the phone and send it to them via certified or registered mail. You will want proof that they have received the reports, so make sure to keep copies for yourself as well.

Identity theft can be a scary thing and for many people it can easily get out of control as they may not even know their identity has been stolen until they get that first call from a creditor. Therefore, make sure to always protect yourself by checking your credit reports at least once a year and sign up for programs that will be able to alert you if any unusual activity might occur on your credit report. This will provide you with some protection from identity theft and also possibly prevent you from ever being one of the statistics for stolen information.