TIPS
HOW TO MONITOR FOR IDENTITY THEFT ACTIVITY
WHAT TO LOOK FOR ONCE YOU’VE RECEIVED YOUR CREDIT REPORT

While no one can totally prevent this crime from occurring, the following information will offer some positive steps to decrease your risk of identity theft:

TIPS

• Do not carry all of your credit cards, Social Security card, passport, and birth certificate.  Carry them only when needed.  Reduce the number of credit cards you carry to a minimum.

• Memorize your Social Security Number, passwords and PIN numbers—do not use your date of birth, home telephone number or last four numbers of your Social Security number.

• When you obtain a new credit card, sign it immediately and add the words, “Photo ID Required.”

• Keep your credit card in sight when it‘s being charged to prevent “skimming.”  (Skimming is when a sales clerk swipes your card through a machine designed to record your credit information. This machine is NOT the same as the machine the clerk will run it through to process your charge.)

• Report all lost or stolen cards immediately to the credit card company, the three credit bureaus and your local police department.

• Keep a list or photocopy of all your credit cards, bank account numbers and phone numbers of customer service and fraud departments in a secure place (not in your wallet), so you can quickly contact all of the companies if cards are lost or you suspect fraudulent activity.  YOU CAN EASILY DOCUMENT THIS INFORMATION ON THE IDENTITY THEFT ACTION PLAN THAT IS AVAILABLE ON THIS WEBPAGE.

• Save and match credit card receipts with monthly statements. Check online accounts daily.

• If you have applied for a new credit card and it has not arrived in a timely manner, call the financial institution involved.

• Deposit mail in U.S. Postal Service collection boxes, rather than your own mailbox if you are located in an area where others can access your mailbox.

• Don’t leave mail in your mailbox overnight or on weekends.

• Shred unwanted documents with personal information including pre-approvals for credit cards received in the mail (cross cut shredder preferred). Criminals can retrieve these and activate the card.

• Cancel unused credit cards and charge accounts. Destroy all old cards you no longer use.  Cut them so that the number is unrecognizable.

• Shred all credit card receipts.

• You can sign up for a credit monitoring service that alerts you of activity indicating possible identity theft.

• Order and review credit reports annually from the three credit reporting agencies. www.equifax.com, www.experian.com, www.transunion.com

• Don’t leave receipts behind at ATMs, on counters, at financial institutions, trash receptacles, or at gasoline pumps.

• Memorize PIN numbers and cover the keypad with your free hand to prevent shoulder surfing.

• Avoid ATMs that look unusual in any way–unusual signage, unusual devices (e.g. a camera angled to record your PIN number).

• Use different PIN numbers for each account.

• Beware of mail, telephone, or e-mail solicitations offering prizes, especially if personal information is requested.

• Do not provide unnecessary information when ordering checks (SS number, phone number, driver’s license number).

• Do not provide information in response to e-mails requesting updated account information.  Financial institutions will never request personal information via e-mail.

• Install and keep anti-virus and spyware software updated.

• When no longer needed, shred anything that has a signature, account number, Social Security number, or medical or legal information.

• Do not leave purse, wallet, or packages in your vehicle.  Thieves are looking for credit card receipts in packages.

• Do not leave your employer ID badge in your vehicle.

• When traveling, use the hotel safe for any personal documents.

• When Internet shopping, make sure the company is reputable and displays an approved security symbol.  Log out of the site when finished.

• Never use a debit card or check card when shopping online.

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HOW TO MONITOR FOR IDENTITY THEFT ACTIVITY

The sooner you take action to clear your records, the better. That's why it's important to order your credit reports at least once a year. A credit report lists all bank and financial accounts under your name and provides other indications of whether someone has wrongfully opened or used any accounts in your name. Reviewing your credit report may help you catch discrepancies and errors that could indicate that you have fallen victim to a financial crime.

You can get one free credit report every year from each of the three national credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Contact the credit bureaus directly to request all three reports at once. Or, be your own no-cost credit-monitoring service by spreading out your requests, and ordering from a different bureau every four months. (More comprehensive monitoring services are also available from the credit bureaus for a fee.)

Equifax
P.O. Box 740241,
Atlanta, GA 30374-0241.
To report fraud: (800) 525-6285 or write to address above.
To order a credit report:  (800) 685-1111.
To opt out of pre-approved offers of credit: (888) 567-8688.
www.equifax.com

Experian
P.O. Box 2104
Allen, TX 75013
To report fraud: (888) 397-3742 or write to address above.
To order a credit report:  (888) 397-3742.
To opt out of pre-approved offers of credit: (888) 567-8688.
www.experian.com

Trans Union
P.O. Box 6790
Fullerton, CA 92634
To report fraud: (800) 680-7289 or write to address above.
To order a credit report:  (800) 916-8800.
To opt out of pre-approved offers of credit: (888) 567-8688.
www.transunion.com

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WHAT TO LOOK FOR ONCE YOU’VE RECEIVED YOUR CREDIT REPORT

• An incorrect address or incorrect place of employment.

• Inactive accounts with activity. (ID thieves sometimes change the address on inactive accounts and use them as their own. Your credit report will show whether an account is open or closed and the activity that coordinates with each account.)

• Accounts in your name that you have not authorized. A new account may be a warning sign that an identity thief has opened an account in your name.

• Unexpected public records. Credit reports show court judgments, liens, foreclosures, evictions, and other public records. Pay attention to records that do not belong to you.

• Unexpected negative information like past-due items. (Typically an identity thief will ring up a lot of charges and never pay them, leaving you with outstanding, unpaid debt.)

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