Prevent Identity Theft by Using Credit Reporting
Posted on June 1, 2009
Filed Under General |
For many people who never experienced identity theft, credit monitoring seems like a waste of money. But those who had become victims have realized the full risk they expose themselves to on a daily basis. Fortunately, it is possible to know whether youâ??ve become a victim or not by asking for a credit report. Under the federal law, everyone can get a free credit report from the three major credit reporting agencies including Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.
The credit report can be retrieved from the website http://www.annualcreditreport.com once every year. After you get the report, it becomes easy to verify if your identity has been stolen. Check for any fraudulent transactions, account information, or modified address. If you discover that youâ??ve become a victim of identity theft, it is right to be concerned. But donâ??t panic just yet. Below are some steps you can do:
1. Contact the Fraud Division. Each of the credit reporting agencies have a fraud department which can answer your queries. Ask them to put a fraud alert on your file. Through this, the thief would not be able to open a new account because the creditor needs your permission first. After several months, you can order for an updated copy to verity the changes.
2. Talk to the Creditors. The second thing you should do is to contact the creditors. If possible, talk to their fraud division. Those who work in this department have a better grasp of your situation. Follow-up with a written document after talking as required by the Fair Credit Billing. Fraudulent charges can be corrected in this step.
3. Go to the Police. File an identity theft report with the local police. Be sure to keep a copy of this report because your creditors might ask for it in the near future.
You may also want to use an Identity theft protection service such as LifeLock. They offer proactive identity theft protection for $99/year.
As you can see, there are steps you can take to minimize the damage of identity theft. However, it has always been said that â??prevention is better than cureâ?. When it comes to identity theft, this saying is definitely true.
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