PREVENT IDENTITY THEFT: BE AWARE, PROACTIVE, AND ASSERTIVE!

By Chris Wright

An incorrect billing statement could be a simple error, or someone might be trying to impersonate you. Forged credit cards remain the bane of credit card users everywhere. But oddly enough, credit card fraud isn’t the biggest problem with identity theft. Chris Wright provides some practical tips to prevent identity theft and to begin the process of restoring your good name.

Identity theft involves acquiring key pieces of a person’s identifying information in order to impersonate them, usually for financial gain. The theft might include such information as a person’s name, address, date of birth, social security number, driver’s license number, mother’s maiden name, license plate number, or other identifying personal data. Once acquired, the identity thief can use this information to commit numerous forms of fraud, which include but aren’t limited to:

• Taking over the victim’s financial accounts
• Opening up new bank accounts
• Purchasing an automobile
• Applying for loans or credit cards
• Renting apartments
• Obtaining social security benefits
• Establishing services with phone companies and utilities

BE AWARE

The biggest problem is that you might never know you’re a victim until you notice something is amiss — you receive an invoice for something you didn’t buy or a statement from a credit account you never opened. Perhaps you’re denied credit based on negative information on your credit report. When you investigate, you discover charges and late payments you didn’t authorize and don’t know anything about. It pays to keep your eyes open. If you think you might be a victim, tackle the problem immediately. Any delay will only hurt you and your credit further.

BE PROACTIVE

Although you can’t prevent identity theft entirely, you can minimize your risk by managing your personal information wisely, cautiously, and with awareness of the potential for identity theft. Here are some effective means of information management:

• Never reveal personal identifying information until you know how it’ll be used and whether the information will be shared with others. Ask if you have a choice about the use of your information and whether it can be kept confidential.
• Pay attention to your credit card billing cycles. Follow up with creditors if your bills don’t arrive on time. A missing credit card bill could mean a thief has changed your billing address to cover their tracks.
• Guard your mail. Deposit outgoing mail in post office collection boxes or at your local post office. Remove mail from your mailbox promptly. If you’re planning to be away from home, request a vacation hold on your mail.
• Put passwords on your credit card, bank, and phone accounts.
• Don’t carry more identification information and credit cards than you actually need.
• Never give out personal information on the phone, through the mail, or over the Internet unless you initiated the contact or know with whom you’re dealing. Legitimate organizations with which you do business have the information they need and won’t ask you for it.
• Shred charge receipts, copies of pre-approved or actual credit applications, insurance forms, physician statements, checks, bank statements, and other financial information. Do not simply discard them in the trash.
• Be cautious about where you leave personal information in your home, especially if you have roommates, employ outside help, or are having service work done to your home.
• Verify that your personal information at work is kept in a secure location.
• Give your Social Security Number (SSN) only when absolutely necessary. Your employer and financial institution will probably need the number for wage and tax purposes.

Some businesses might ask for your SSN to do a credit check. However, you don’t have to give a business the number just because they ask for it. Before providing your SSN, ask the following questions:

• Why do you need my SSN?
• How will it be used?
• What law requires me to give you my SSN?
• What will happen if I don’t give you my SSN?

BE ASSERTIVE

If you suspect that your personal information has been stolen to commit fraud or theft, take action immediately and keep a record of your conversations and correspondence. There are three things you should almost always do:

First, contact the fraud departments of each of the three major credit bureaus. Tell them that you believe you’re an identity-theft victim. Request that a "fraud alert" be placed in your file, as well as a "victim’s statement" asking that creditors call you before opening any new accounts or changing your existing accounts.

At the same time, request a copy of your credit report from each of the credit bureaus. Credit bureaus must give you a free copy of your report if your report is inaccurate because of fraud or if you’ve been denied credit. Otherwise, you can obtain a copy for a small fee. The three major credit bureaus are:

CREDIT BUREAU	TO ORDER REPORT	TO REPORT FRAUD
Equifax www.equifax.com	(800) 685-1111 P.O. Box 740241 Atlanta, GA 30374-0241	(800) 525-6285 P.O. Box 740241 Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
Experian www.experian.com	(888) EXPERIAN (888) 397-3742 P.O. Box 2104 Allen, TX 75013	(888) EXPERIAN (888) 397-3742 P.O. Box 9532 Allen, TX 75103
Trans Union www.tuc.com	(800) 916-8800 P.O. Box 1000 Chester, PA 19022	(800) 680-7289 P.O. Box 6790 Fullerton, CA 92634 Fraud Victim Assistance

Second, contact the creditors for any accounts that have been tampered with or opened fraudulently. Such creditors can include credit card companies, phone companies and other utilities, banks, and other lenders. Ask to speak with someone in the creditor’s security or fraud department and follow your conversation with a letter. Credit card companies must be notified in writing because that’s part of the statutory consumer protection procedure for resolving errors on credit card billing statements.

Third, file a report with your local police or the police in the community where the identity theft occurred. Get a copy of the police report in case proof of the crime is needed when dealing with creditors.

In addition to filing a police report, it’s a good idea to contact the U.S. Secret Service. Although the Secret Service generally investigates cases where the dollar loss is substantial, your information might provide evidence of a larger pattern of fraud requiring their involvement. Local offices are listed in the telephone directory and can be contacted online at www.treas.gov/usss.

OTHER STEPS

Stolen mail. If an identity thief has stolen your mail to get new credit cards, bank and credit card statements, pre-screened credit offers, or tax information, or if an identity thief has falsified change-of-address forms, report the theft to your local postal inspector. Contact your local post office for the phone number or use the Postal Service Web site at www.usps.gov/websites/depart/inspect.

Change of address on credit card accounts. If you discover that an identity thief has changed the billing address on an existing credit card account, close the account. When you open a new account, ask that a password be required before any inquiries or changes can be made on the account.

Bank accounts. If you have reason to believe that an identity thief has tampered with your bank accounts, checks, or ATM card, close the accounts immediately. Again, when opening new accounts, insist on password-only access to the accounts.

If your checks have been stolen or misused, place stop payments on them and request the major check verification companies to notify retailers using their databases not to accept these checks. The major check verification companies are:

National Check Fraud Service: (800) 571-2143

SCAN: (800) 262-7771

TeleCheck: (800) 710-9898 or 927-0188

CrossCheck: (707) 586-0551

Equifax Check System: (800) 437-5120

International Check Services: (800) 526-5380

Investments. If you believe that an identity thief has tampered with your security investments or a brokerage account, report the problem immediately to your broker or account manager and to the Securities and Exchange Commission (http://www.sec.gov/).

Phone service. If an identity thief has established new phone service in your name or is misusing your existing regular or cellular phone service, contact your service provider immediately and cancel the account. If you’re having trouble settling the issue with the local phone company, contact your local Public Utility Commission for local service providers or the Federal Communications Commission for long-distance and cellular providers at (888) CALL-FCC or www.fcc.gov/ccb/enforce/complaints.html.

Employment. If you believe someone is using your SSN to apply for a job or to work, call the Social Security Administration Fraud Hotline at (800) 269-0271. Also call the SSA at (800) 772-1213 to verify the accuracy of the earnings reported on your SSN and to request a copy of your Social Security Statement. Follow up in writing.

Driver’s license. If you suspect that an identity thief is using your name or SSN to get a driver’s license or a non-driver’s ID card, contact your Department of Motor Vehicles. If your state uses your SSN as a driver’s license number, ask to substitute another number.

Bankruptcy. If you believe that someone has filed bankruptcy using your name, write to the U.S. Trustee in the Region where the bankruptcy was filed. You’ll find a listing of the U.S. Trustee Program’s Regions at www.usdoj.gov/ust. You should also file a complaint with the U.S. Attorney or the FBI in the city where the bankruptcy was filed.

Criminal records/arrests. If an identity thief creates a criminal record under your name, you’ll need to hire an attorney to help resolve the problem. The procedures for clearing your name vary among jurisdictions.

Protecting our personal information and our privacy is essential if we’re to reduce the risk of identity theft. We need to educate our respective organizations and the public (our clients) to the risks of identity theft and the countermeasures available.

Chris M. Wright, CPP, is President of The Wright Group, a pre-employment screening and security-consulting firm in California. She’s a Regional Vice President for ASIS International and lectures across the country on Privacy and Identity Theft issues. Chris is an author in the area of Workplace Violence and uses her knowledge of privacy to assist in handling cases of violence in schools and in the workplace.