What to do when you become a credit or identity theft victim

Has it ever occurred to you that someone can steal your identity and use it to forge credits under your name?

Identity theft is possible nowadays because of the vulnerability of some personal information kept, especially in online services. Identity theft occurs when someone uses your personal information such as name and social security number. Even credit card numbers are not exempt, which makes yet another form of theft possible credit theft. Of course, both forms of theft happen when your personal information has been used without your permission whenever fraud and other crimes are committed. Despite your best efforts to manage the flow of your personal information or to keep it to yourself, skilled identity thieves may use a variety of methods to gain access to your data.

Identity and credit theft are considered serous crimes. If you are a person whose identity has been used or stolen, you could end up cleaning up the mess thieves have made of your good name and credit record. In the meantime, you could lose your job, end up having a bad credit history, or worse, get arrested for a crime you have never committed.

What do you need to do if you suspect that your identity has been stolen? To go through these measures could mean preventing further damage to your name and averting credit theft. First, contact the fraud departments to place a fraud alert on your credit file. This will allow creditors to contact you before opening any new accounts or making any changes to your existing accounts. Second, close the accounts which you suspect to be tampered with or opened fraudulently. Third, file a police report which you could submit to your creditors and others who may require proof of the crime. Finally, file your complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) which maintains a database of identity theft cases used by law enforcement agencies for investigations. The FTC serves as the federal clearinghouse for complaints by victims of identity theft. While the FTC does not resolve individual consumer problems, your complaint helps us investigate fraud, and can lead to law enforcement action. If you file a complaint, it will also alert and inform others about identity and credit theft. Reporting cases of this nature will allow documentation and solving these crimes easier by tracking the operations of identity and credit thieves. If you fear that the data you disclose to the FTC will endanger you, then consider this the FTC uses secure socket layer (SSL) encryption to protect the transmission of the information you submit to the FTC when you use its secure online forms. The information you provide is stored securely.

You will discover that dealing with problems resulting from identity theft can be time-consuming and frustrating. Most victims can resolve their cases by being assertive, organized, and knowledgeable about their legal rights. Some laws require you to notify companies within specific time periods. Don't delay. Contact companies to deal with these problems, and ask for supervisors if you need more help than you're getting.

Examining fraudulent credit reports will show you how credit theft occurs. So how do you correct fraudulent information? The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) establishes procedures for correcting fraudulent information on your credit report and requires that your report be made available only for certain legitimate business needs. As for credit cards, the Fair Credit Billing Act establishes procedures for resolving billing errors on your credit card accounts, including fraudulent charges on your accounts. The law also limits your liability for unauthorized credit card charges to $50 per card.

Once resolved, most cases of identity and credit theft stay resolved. But occasionally, some victims have recurring problems. To help stay on top of the situation, continue to monitor your credit reports and read your financ