The FTC reports that Identity Theft In the U.S., for the year 2000, claimed 900,000 individual victims (http://www.identitytheft.org), each with the potential for multiple instances of Fraud Use of Credit Card. There is a great unreported number as well of those who never filed a complaint due to lack of understanding. The below resources are provided in order to assist in combating this crime.

• Federal Trade Commission's Consumer Sentinel Centralized ID Theft Repository

Victims Assistance sites:

• ID Theft affidavit, which provides a standardized document for the reporting of this crime
• US Government's centralized site for ID Theft information
• FTC's On-line Complaint Form
• Federal Bureau of Investigation's Internet Complaint Site
• Federal Consumer Information center

 

Report Crime to Police:

Victims should report the crime to their state or local police department. A request should be made for license and registration checks in order to identify possible unlawful activity. Victims should provide all information which may reveal the manner in which the identity was unlawfully obtained and describe any known fraudulent activity. (RI General Law Credit Card Crime Act)

 

Credit Card Companies:

Victims should contact their credit card companies to report unauthorized purchases and/or unauthorized account activity which is using your information.

 

Consumer Reporting Agencies (CRA)

To protect a person's consumer credit report, each of the below Credit Reporting Agencies (CRA) must be notified upon suspicion or confirmation of Fraud to include ID Theft. A fraud "flag" should be placed on each consumer credit report. Please be aware that each of the major CSRs accept the ID Theft Affidavit (www.consumer.gov/idtheft/affidavit.htm) found on the FTC's web site. Ask the credit bureaus to add a fraud statement to your file, which requires any potential creditor to contact you before approving any credit applications in your name.

Equifax

Office of Fraud Alert
P.O. Box 105069
Atlanta, GA
30348
http://www.equifax.com

1-800-525-6285 for the reporting of fraud
1-800-685-1111 for credit reports
1-888-567-8688 Opt Out for pre-approved cards

Experian

Consumer Fraud Assistance
P.O. Box 1017
Allen, TX
75013
http://www.experian.com (go to Fraud Center)

1-888-EXPERIAN for the reporting of fraud
1-888-EXPERIAN (397-3742) for credit reports
1-800-567-8688 Opt Out for pre-approved cards

Trans Union

760 Sproul Road
P.O. Box 390
Springfield, PA
19064-0390
http://www.transunion.com/Personal/FraudInformation.asp

1-800-680-7289 for the reporting of fraud
1-714-447-6034 for the reporting of fraud via fax
1-800-916-8800 for credit reports
1-888-5OPTOUT for Opt Out for pre-approved cards Distribution

The California Attorney General's Office has launched an Identity Theft Registry to assist victims who are wrongfully identified as criminals. You can learn more about entering your name into the registry at http://www.caag.state.ca.us/idtheft/index.htm or call toll-free: (888) 880-0240.