Page 4 - Identity Theft.pdf
P. 4
Equifax rumors The FTC provides a sample letter
you can use to explain the situation.
Ask the business to send you a letter You should hear from the agencies in
confirming that the fraudulent about 30 days on how they are
account isn't yours, that you aren't handling the dispute, Wu said.
liable for it, and that it was removed
from your credit report. r Prevent future fraud
Under most state laws, you're not Once you've cleared up the situation,
responsible for any debt incurred on remain vigilant. Just because you've
fraudulent new accounts opened in reported an incident of identity theft,
your name without your permission, it doesn't mean it won't happen
according to the FTC. again.
Keep a close eye on all your
statements. Consider enrolling in a
credit monitoring and theft protection
service. If you've already frozen your
credit reports, you'll have to
temporarily lift the freeze in order to
enroll in a monitoring service,
according to the FTC.
Related: Equifax turned its hack into
r Dispute any fraudulent a public relations catastrophe
information on your credit
You should also try to file your taxes
report
as early as possible next year --
If a thief uses your identity to create before someone else tries to use
a new credit card account, for your Social Security number to steal
example, it will end up on your credit you return, suggests the
report. But you have no control over Massachusetts Attorney General.
that account. If the imposter doesn't
pay the bills, it can seriously hurt In addition to your Social Security
your credit score. number, Equifax says that your
driver's license number may also
You'll need to write to each of the have been exposed. In some states,
three credit rating agencies to that you can ask the Department of Motor
they remove the incorrect Vehicles to place a flag on your
information. license number.
P.G. Better Living
