Identity Theft Victim.

Why being a victim of this "White Collar Crime" is worse than being mugged.

Let's face it, being mugged by a criminal is not very pleasant. As a retail manager, I had the misfortune to be forced to stare down the business end of a 45 automatic once. Let me repeat,
"Not very pleasant!" Here's the kicker, within 30 days, the pain and anger was almost gone. Not so with being an identity theft victim.

Some victims of identity theft have to carry around proof that they did not commit crimes they
were accused of. They have to endure excessive searches at airports everytime they travel.
They are still turned down for loans and other financial transactions, that they normally qualify for.
They still have to pay higher interest rates on purchases even though they have proved that they are victims of identity theft.

As an Identity Theft Victim, you really cannot control many of these outcomes. You can take definite steps however, that, if taken early enough, can actually diminish the long lasting effects. Below are listed the Top Seven actions you should take, in order of importance.

The Very First action you should take would be to contact the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and make a report. You may do so by telephone toll-free at 1-877-ID THEFT (877-438-4338) or TDD at 202-326-2502, or by regular mail. Send correspondence certified, return receipt requested to: The Consumer Response Center, FTC, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20580.

The next step would be to contact any one of the three consumer reporting agencies, (Credit Bureaus). The Fair Credit Reporting Act(FCRA) gives you specific rights when you are, or believe that you are, the victim of identity theft. They will contact the other two for you.

You have the right to ask that consumer reporting agencies place “fraud alerts” in your credit file to let potential creditors and others know that you may be a victim of idtheft.

If you suspect you were victimized by an identity thief, a fraud alert can make it more difficult for someone to get credit in your name because it tells creditors to follow
certain procedures to protect you. It also should delay the credit approval process.

As we mentioned earlier, there is no need to call all three consumer reporting agencies. Call one and they will notify the other two, who must also place fraud alerts in your file. Their contact information is below.

• Equifax: 1-800-525-6285; website:
  http://www.equifax.com/
  
  
• Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN (397-3742); website:
  http://www.experian.com/ and
  
  
• TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289; email:mailto:www.transunion.com
  Email Address

Fraud alerts stay in your file for at least 90 days. If they are extended, they stay in your file for seven years. The credit bureaus need you to provide proof of your identity, which may include your Social Security number. They will decide what proof is adequate. Besides fraud alerts, the credit bureaus have the ability to place a credit freeze on your files. This is also an option you may or may not want to explore, depending upon your level of victimization.

Additional steps that must be taken after becoming an identity theft victim.

Step Three
Contact your local, federal or state law enforcement agency (police department) and file police reports. Every report you file shows how serious you are about correcting the situation. The reports also serve as proof to the credit bureaus, showing them that you really believe the idtheft occurred. You may also call your local office of the FBI or the U.S. Secret Service to report crimes relating to identity theft and fraud. Their numbers are easily obtained from the local telephone directory.

Step Four
Contact your local office of the Postal Inspection Service (The Postal Police), if you suspect that an identity thief has submitted a change-of-address form with the Post Office to redirect your mail, or has used the mail to commit frauds involving your identity. Please have proof of these claims readily available.

Step Five,
if you suspect that your Social Security Number is being fraudulently used, contact the Social Security Administration at call 800-269-0271 to report the fraud

Step Six
The Internal Revenue Service if you suspect tax violations were committed using your identity. (call 1-800-829-0433 to report the violations).

Step Seven, (depending on your level of victimization).
Now that you have contacted the main players first, you start contacting the secondary players. These are listed below in no particular order. The premise is that they all should be contacted at some point, depending upon your particular situation.

Contact all creditors with whom your name or identifying data have been fraudulently used. For example, you may need to contact your cable company if your cable bill has been stolen or you find fraudulent charges on it.

Contact all financial institutions where you have accounts that an identity thief has taken over or that have been created in your name. You may need to cancel those accounts, place stop-payment orders on any outstanding checks that may not have cleared, and change your ATM card, your bank account numbers , and your Personal Identification Numbers (PIN).

If your check book was compromised by an identity thief, you should contact the major check verification companies, especially if you know that a particular merchant has received a check stolen from you, contact the check verification company that the merchant uses. The major check verification companies are listed here:

• CheckRite -- (800) 766-2748
• ChexSystems -- (800) 428-9623 (for closed checking accounts)
• CrossCheck -- (800) 552-1900
• Equifax -- (800) 437-5120
• National Processing Co. (NPC) -- (800) 526-5380
• SCAN -- (800) 262-7771 and
• TeleCheck -- (800) 710-9898

We know that it seems like a lot to do, and it is. The fact is, you only get one identity per lifetime. However you treat it, is exactly how you have to live with it! Being an Identity Theft Victim is a serious situation. You simply cannot cut any corners in your quest to redeem your good name.