By Amy Blakeslee
Apr 30, 2010
It was Thanksgiving weekend a few years ago. I decided to take a time out from family activities of baking cookies, decorating the house and holiday shopping to pay some bills. I pulled up our banking account online and almost choked on my coffee. Our account balance was $2,000 less than I expected. In shock, I hastily pulled up the account transactions only to see 4 withdrawals on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday for $500 each at ATMs far away from where we live.
I immediately called the bank and the customer service representative told me that we were a victim of identity theft. She said what likely happened was that my husband used his debit card somewhere where they were able to capture his pin when he entered it. I also learned that it is not uncommon for identity thieves to make these kinds of withdrawals over holiday periods, when people are away and not paying attention to their bank accounts.
Our debit cards were immediately canceled, the $2,000 was credited back to our account and the bank issued new debit cards. We filed a report with the police department but they weren’t very interested in pursuing the case; apparently identity theft rates low compared to other local crimes. This is pretty amazing considering that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) estimates that approximately 9 million Americans are victims of identity theft each year.
What is identity theft?
Identity theft occurs when someone uses your personally identifying information (such as your name, Social Security number, or credit card number) without your permission, to commit fraud or other crimes. These crimes include obtaining a loan in your name, using your credit card to purchase items for themselves, renting an apartment in your name, etc. And, as you may have guessed, these thieves don’t pay back the debt they incur on your behalf.
Many times people do not find out a crime has been committed until they get a copy of their credit report, get contacted by a debt collector or are denied credit because of an outstanding balance due on the fraudulent account. Identity theft can have serious repercussions for the victims. I was one of the lucky ones who was able to resolve the problem very quickly. Others may spend many stressful months and lots of money trying to set the record straight and clear their names.
How can my identity be stolen?
Thieves use many different methods to get a hold of your personal information. Most likely, they will:
- Dig through trash to find statements, bills or other documents with your personal information
- Use a special device to capture your credit card and pin information
- Send emails pretending to be a financial institution or credit card company and try to get you to enter your personal information
- Complete a change of address form at the post office, diverting your bills to a new location
- Steal wallets, purses, mail, and personnel records
- Use false pretenses to obtain your personal information from financial institutions, utility companies and other sources
What do they do with my stolen identity?
Thieves may use your identity to commit illegal acts such as:
- Credit card fraud – by opening new accounts in your name or changing the address of an existing account so you don’t receive bills right away and are unaware of the crime
- Utilities fraud – by opening a new account in your name
- Bank fraud – by creating counterfeit checks in your name and account, opening an account in your name and writing bad checks, cloning your ATM card and draining your bank account, or taking out a loan in your name
- Government documents fraud – by obtaining a driver’s license in your name with their photo, applying for welfare benefits in your name, or filing a fraudulent tax return using your name
- Other fraud – by getting a job using your Social Security number, renting a house in your name, providing your personal information when receiving medical services and giving police your name if they are arrested in a crime
What if someone steals my identity?
There are several things you should do if you discover you are a victim of identity theft:
- File a police report (although it didn’t seem to matter in our case)
- Check your credit report regularly
- Alert creditors to the situation
- Review all bank and credit card statements in detail and dispute fraudulent transactions immediately
- File a complaint with the FTC
What can I do to stop identity theft?
The most important thing you can do to prevent identity theft is to become aware of how your identity can be stolen and to take measures to protect yourself. Educate your friends and family since the more people there are onto their crimes, the harder it is for thieves to succeed. I regularly take action to protect my identity by shredding all documents before I throw them away, cutting up credit cards when they expire, not responding to email requests for personal information, and regularly checking my bank balances and credit report. To make it easier, I signed up for a credit monitoring service; for a small monthly fee it will immediately alert me when changes occur to my credit report. This sound like a lot of effort to avoid identity theft, but isn’t your peace of mind and the financial security of your family worth it?
Credit Monitoring alerts you to changes on all 3 of your credit reports! Get a free 7-day trial plus credit score. Act NOW!
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