I Am a Victim

When it comes to credit fraud and identity theft, credit card companies will tell you they are the victims because they suffer the financial losses. They continue to minimize the devastating effects it has on your life.  Consumers faced with these types of crimes are often forced to prove their innocence and spend countless hours, days, weeks, months and often years, doing so. You must prove you are the victim and not the criminal -often times while sitting in jail.

We don't have control over our information anymore -the best we can do is try to make it useless to thieves. Unfortunately doing it on our own isn't always easy -or possible.  

What should you do if you discover you are a victim of fraud?

Contact one of the national credit bureaus-Equifax (800-525-6285), Experian (888-397-3742), or TransUnion (800-680-7289)-and ask that a fraud alert be put on your account; it will advise creditors to verify any information about new accounts with you directly before establishing new credit. These fraud alerts will only remain active for about 90 days. You must continue to request them at least every three months

File a Police Report with your local police department if you believe you are a victim. Tell them that you need to file a formal document to help you clear up the theft that has already occurred. Notify the Federal Trade Commission and your state Attorney General

Contact the creditor of each fraudulent account and keep copious notes and records of these conversations. You'll be asked to fill out the standard FTC affidavit, available at

Send all of your creditors a copy of your police report-and request the credit bureaus forward you an application requesting that your fraud alerts remain on your credit report for longer than the standard 90 days. When a police report has been filed it validates your claim-be sure to send out all correspondence via certified mail with a return receipt at the post office.

The creditor must, upon your request, supply you with the documents pertaining to the fraudulent account. This includes the application for the account and all transaction records. You can then use these records to help prove your innocence and remove the fraudulent accounts. You must convince the creditor that you were a victim of identity theft in order for the lender to take the necessary steps to remove the charges from your account and additionally report fraud to the credit bureaus.

The Federal Trade Commission offers the following information from their Deter, Detect and Defend awareness program. See: DEFEND: Take Action Immediately

I'm frequently asked "What can I do to avoid an identity theft?"

What's my answer?

Be proactive!

Find tips to protect your identity on this blog.