What to Do if Someone Steals Your Identity

15 Min Read | Mar 25, 2022

Ever wake up in the morning hoping to deal with a stolen identity? No? Me either. Only it tin happen to anyone—in fact, information technology'south happened to me. And in 2019 lone identity thieves stole $sixteen.9 billion from their victims!¹When ID theft happens, it could mean some weirdo's using personal details like your Social Security number or banking concern business relationship to do anything from going on shopping sprees to filing a taxation render in your proper name.

Getting everything dorsum to the way it was can exist intimidating—like a months-long effort to climb over a mountain. How practice you even begin to put things directly? Every bit someone who'south been through it, accept it from me: Y'all can go your life dorsum. And nosotros're going to walk with you through some practical steps to get that done.

How to Know if Someone Stole Your Identity

First things first. Having your identity stolen isn't e'er something that'southward immediately obvious. There are certain things to await for if y'all have a sense that this might have happened to you.

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Lots of things could happen that would strongly indicate somebody'southward gotten ahold of your info and used it to exercise fraud. None of the following signs on their own would bear witness y'all're a victim of theft (could only exist an mistake), but if y'all find one or more of these, it's definitely fourth dimension to bank check. (We'll talk adjacent nigh steps to check for ID theft.)

Getting calls from debt collectors about accounts yous didn't open up
A charge on your credit card statement you don't recognize
Medical bills you don't retrieve, or medical denials you weren't expecting
Paper bills no longer coming in the postal service
Your credit card statement listing a new business relationship you lot don't know
A rising credit score fifty-fifty though yous've initiated no new debt
A dipping credit score even though you lot're current on all payments
Beingness unexpectedly denied for a loan
Having your taxation render rejected (because some thief already filed on your behalf to get your return) or receiving a tax transcript you never requested

Again, if ane or more of those has come up to your attending, there are ii key steps you should have right now to see whether your ID has been stolen:

Cheque all banking concern and credit card statements. That's something you ought to be doing all the time anyway. But especially if you have a suspicion that you've been a victim of ID theft, get over all the statements closely and advisedly.
Run a free credit written report on yourself. You're entitled to one free study every twelvemonth from each credit agency (and so that's three free reports per year). This is a quick and like shooting fish in a barrel way to find ID theft.

Hopefully you're not gonna discover annihilation. But in case yous do discover evidence of ID theft, don't panic! At this point, the next logical stride is to figure out how to prove that your identity was actually stolen so yous can prepare to go your life back and start to recover.

How Can Yous Prove Someone Stole Your Identity?

Once you lot spot those mysterious charges or credit menu statements coming out of nowhere, the theft will be articulate—to you! But that doesn't necessarily mean that the businesses where the fraud occurred volition agree. You'll want to know how to get nigh proving the theft occurred.

Contact Each Business organization' Fraud Department

A skilful offset step is to contact each and every business where someone pretended to be you while opening accounts or making purchases. In particular, connect with their fraud section—sometimes chosen the Fraud Squad—considering that'southward their whole task, and most companies will take one.

Share What You Know About the Theft

Next exist sure to let them know that the activity they've seen in your name is fake. If they ask for proof, you might want to mention any other examples you've already found where fraud was happening in your proper name. The fraud section will be well aware of how often these things happen. Depending on how apace your ID thief was moving, or how much damage they were doing, the size of their crime might speak for itself as fraud. Either way, virtually businesses will be eager to assist you stop farther fraud from happening on their terminate.

Freeze Accounts

We'll embrace this in more particular beneath, simply you should definitely enquire each concern to close or freeze the accounts where you've detected fraud.

File With the Federal Trade Committee

Finally, be certain to report your ID theft to the Federal Trade Commission. They have the resource to brainstorm an investigation, observe out what happened, and hopefully find the perp.

How Long Does Information technology Accept to Recover From Identity Theft?

Unfortunately, there'south no scientific style to know for sure how long this volition take. Quite a bit of the timeline will depend on the type of fraud you suffered. For example, if your instance is a elementary one of a stolen credit card without any other theft of sensitive info, information technology could be every bit quick as reversing the charges and replacing the bill of fare. Maybe about a week.

But it can exist more than complicated—and accept a lot longer than a week! Imagine the all-too-mutual experience of somebody stealing your Social Security number and using it to open up false accounts in your name. You could exist looking at many months of talking with creditors and the credit reporting agencies to dispute the charges and prove you're not responsible for them.

And what about running up tax debt in your name, not to mention committing major crimes? It could have years to opposite all the harm to your personal identity.

How Can I Get My Life Dorsum After Identity Theft?

Having your identity stolen is a serious violation, and if at that place'due south been a financial impact on summit of the ID theft, it can really get you down. I understand this firsthand. It sucks.

Only I'm hither to give you some promise for what's ahead, and some practical steps to get things dorsum to normal. So keep this in mind: Youcan become out of this mess and restore control of your personal data. Here'south what you demand to do:

ane. Ask for a fraud alarm to be placed on your credit account.

If you observe you've been a victim of identity theft, contact one of the three main credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax and TransUnion) and have them place a fraud warning on your data. Once you've contacted one agency, they'll allow the other 2 know.

Having a fraud alert in place is helpful if you were involved in a information alienation or had your Social Security card, driver's license or bank account information stolen. If someone tries to apply for a loan or new credit carte du jour with your info, the credit bureau lets creditors know an extra security check needs to happen to confirm the applicant's identity.

Placing a fraud alert doesn't toll y'all anything, and it can be renewed annually. You lot tin also request an extended fraud warning that lasts up to seven years if you accept been a confirmed victim of identity theft and take filed a report with the Federal Merchandise Commission (FTC). And if y'all take an extended fraud alert, you lot can get two free credit reports from each of the credit bureaus every yr.

ii. Put a freeze on your credit report with all three credit bureaus.

Putting a freeze on your credit report is unlike from a fraud alert because information technology cuts off anyone from getting access to your credit study without your permission. With a credit freeze, you'll have to contact all three credit bureaus individually, but it's still free!

Once your credit report is frozen, the credit bureaus can't release your credit data without your permission to lift the freeze, and yous'll take to do that either over the phone, online or in writing. Yous'll want to lift the freeze if yous're applying for a task or moving to a new habitation and your credit report needs to be checked.

You can put a freeze on your report fifty-fifty if yous're non sure you've been a victim of identity theft, and then information technology's an effective, proactive footstep to take.

But the main aim of a credit freeze is to make information technology harder for someone who stole your personal information to take on debt in your name. The fraud alertI mentioned earlieris what stops thieves from getting whatever further (because of that actress security check).

3. File a police report.

Since itis a criminal offence to steal someone's personal identity and utilise it to commit a fraudulent act, you should file a police force study. Even if it looks like the thief is operating online or in a unlike country, you should all the same contact your local police department to file a written report.

This is of import for a few reasons:

Filing a constabulary report tin can help back up your claim when yous're dealing with whatever incoming collection calls wanting you lot to pay accounts that were opened in your name.
You're helping the law with whatsoever ongoing identity theft cases they might exist working on—especially if the thief is operating locally.
If the thief uses your information to commitanother crime (in your name!), the constabulary will have a record of yous filing this initial identity theft incident that can aid their investigation.

4. File a written report with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

When information technology comes to identity theft, time actuallyis money. Your next step is to make certain y'all've notified the Federal Merchandise Commission of your stolen identity through their online service.

If you study your identity theft to the FTC withintwo business days of discovering it, you willonly be liable to pay $50 of whatsoever unauthorized apply of your depository financial institution and credit accounts (under federal law). The longer you leave it, the more that fiscal liability falls on your shoulders.²

Once you lot've filed your report, you'll be able to put together your own recovery plan with their help, along with some assistance in each pace. Just get gear up to buckle in for a long journey.

Y'all tin can then track the recovery progress of your personal information. Within their recovery program, the FTC volition assistance yous fill up out forms and will provide sample letters when you're writing to credit bureaus, banks or debt collectors—or anyone else you might have forgotten about. Considering finding the right words (other than "help!") tin be tough during a time like this.

Having this official FTC report also helps ostend that your identity was stolen when y'all're writing to debt collectors or fraud departments, and when you're filing a police written report.

v. Bank check your depository financial institution and credit carte du jour statements and credit reports.

If you haven't already, take some time to comb through your bank account and credit card statements, along with your electric current credit report.

You lot can asking your credit report for free from each of the reporting agencies through annualcreditreport.com once a year. Stagger these and so you tin check 1 credit report every iv months. Look at these documents and flag anything that screams, "I didn't openthataccount!" Now is the fourth dimension to highlight them to assist your case.

Then, you lot can dispute any information on your credit written report that's fake, wrong and a consequence of the identity theft.

6. Go any fraudulent account records from debt collectors.

Don't ignore any letters or calls you may receive from debt collectors following an identity theft. Stay ahead of the game by informing themin writingof your identity existence stolen. You should also give them a copy of your FTC report to back information technology up.

Hither's what you can ask from debt collectors when y'all write to them:

Inquire to see any information (from the telephone number used by the fraudster to open the fake business relationship to copies of application forms and statements listing fraudulent transactions) they might take on you resulting from the identity theft.
Enquire them to end contacting y'all with drove notices that you don't owe. Let's face it: No one likes hearing from debt collectors—but especially not when information technology isn't your fault in the first place!

Retrieve: You are inside your rights to obtainwritten information about that debt—but you lot have to put your request in a concrete letter of the alphabet to the debt collector. The FTC fifty-fifty provides sample messages for y'all. And if you're looking for actress peace of mind, send your letter with a certified mail service receipt so you can track when they've received it.

By writing to the debt collectors, yous're also ensuring that they're prohibited from reporting any fraudulent accounts that have been gear up in your proper noun to the credit bureaus.

7. Contact your bank's fraud department.

Your bank has a fraud department, so call to tell them what happened. They'll let y'all know what steps to take regarding your electric current depository financial institution business relationship. They might even propose you to close your accounts and open new ones if information technology means limiting the impairment of the theft.

8. Contact your utility provider and other account fraud departments.

Fraudsters tin can use your information to set up anything from medical insurance to utilities in your proper name. I know—information technology'south ridiculous.

If whatsoever utility providers, credit bill of fare companies, loan specialists, debt collectors or insurance companies are sending yous bills for things you don't actually owe, yous demand to reach out to them ASAP and allow them know your identity was stolen.

Fifty-fifty if you oasis't received whatsoever bogus bills from your providers or credit bill of fare companies, go ahead and contact them anyhow. Because if one of your accounts was hacked, chances are, the others are also at risk.

Stolen identities tin fifty-fifty be used to file taxation returns in your name. If you think your data has been used to file a fraudulent revenue enhancement refund claim, contact the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

nine. Close whatever fake accounts that were created in your name.

Remember how you already combed through your credit report and noted charges that weren't yours?

By now, y'all've contacted the iii credit bureaus and the FTC, so information technology'due south fourth dimension to clean upwardly and close downward any accounts that take been opened without your noesis.

Reach out to those companies' fraud departments (whether it's a banking concern, utility company or insurance provider) and close downwards all the accounts falsely opened in your name. Employ any FTC reference numbers on your identity theft report to back yous up.

10. Report if your personal identification was stolen.

If identification like your Social Security menu, driver's license or passport is stolen, you should contact the relevant agencies immediately and so they're aware of the theft and can start the procedure of replacing them:

Social Security Carte du jour: Contact the Social Security Administration for a replacement online. If you doubtable your Social Security number has already been used fraudulently, contact the Part of the Inspector Full general to written report it.
Driver's License: Contact your local Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to written report the theft and become a replacement.
Passport: Contact the U.S. Department of State to study the theft and adapt a replacement.

xi. Update your passwords and usernames.

Now it'southward time to update those usernames and passwords. Change any passwords linked to accounts that were or could be affected past identity theftimmediately. If you use the same password for every account you have, it's fourth dimension to modify them all.

Your passwords should never match or contain your proper noun or engagement of birth—that but makes them easier to guess! Things similar "password0" and "abc123" just don't cut it anymore. I recommend that you use a combination of upper and lowercase messages, numbers and special characters to continue it complicated and difficult for identity thieves to estimate.

This, along with other steps to protect yourself from identity theft (similar shredding sensitive documents and not carrying your Social Security menu effectually with you), will help you be more than secure in the long run.

12. Look at your recovery options.

By now, you might be starting to realize this whole recovery procedure can take a few months or even years, depending on how severe the harm is. That's why it'southward important to accept activeness as soon as you realize your identity has been stolen.

The hours involved in getting your identity back really are a huge mount to climb on your ain. Does your bank or fraud protection even offer recovery and restoration services?

If information technology turns out your identity theft "protection" was no more than an email letting you know your identity was stolen, information technology's time to get with the experts at Zander Insurance. Since they are a RamseyTrusted provider, yousknowthey've got your back.

You can become comprehensive identity theft restoration services so that if this happens to you (or if it happensagain), a Certified Recovery Specialist will relieve you endless hours and all the legwork that's required to recover from an identity theft.

George Kamel

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