NEW CONTENT 11/25/2009
Page index:
PHISHING
DIY IDENTITY-THEFT PROTECTION
File a Complaint with the Federal Trade Commission
CREDIT BUEARU CONTACT INFO
PHISHING
So what exactly is phishing? It is someone who is trying to get your personal financial or identity records so they can steal your identity or rob you. There have been reports of crooks trying to steal your house by getting a mortgage on your house without your permission or knowledge. Then they take the money and disappear, defaulting on the loan and leaving you to prove you didn't do it. Usually the crooks opens credit accounts with your personal information and leave you to prove you didn't open those accounts. It can cost you Thousands of dollars and months of time to straighten these things out.
How To Avoid Phishers
Usually it starts with an e-mail or phone call supposedly from your bank, credit card, government, or other business you do business with. They claim there is a problem and need your social security number, or credit card number, or other personal information to verify it really is you so they can fix the problem. DO NOT GIVE THEM ANY INFORMATION! ! Hang up or close the e-mail. Then using your own phone and the customer service number from your own personal phone book, contact the customer service department directly. NEVER EVER click on a link provided in a suspicious e-mail! These crooks are very good at reproducing a legitimate business' web page to steal information from you. Always use the e-mail address or web site address that you already have in your personal address book.
If you did not initiate the contact, there is a very good chance it is a crook phishing for your information.
Sometimes a credit card company will call you and ask if you are on vacation in France, or did you just buy a new Corvette with your credit card? That is probably a legitimate call, but they already have your information and will not ask for it.
When in doubt, hang up! Then call customer service yourself.
Return to top of page.DIY IDENTITY-THEFT PROTECTION - A 12 STEP PROGRAM
Author - Dan Tynan
You can read the complete article in PC World June 2008
YOU DO NOT have to spend $100 to $200 a year to defend yourself from Identity Theft at the level of protection that a paid for service offers. You can do almost everything those services do, for free. But the following steps will require time and effort.
1. Get a free copy of your credit report at Annual Credit Report.com Do not be fooled by look alike sites that promise free reports if you subscribe to their credit-monitoring services. Better yet, order by phone at 877-322-8228.
2. For DIY credit monitoring, order a free report every three (3) months from a different credit-reporting bureau (see below). Scan the report for unfamiliar information such as accounts you don't remember opening.
3. Place a fraud alert on your credit report by calling one of the credit bureaus. You can find the contact information for all three bureaus by browsing to the Fight Identity Theft web sight. (see below)
4. Put a recurring event in your online calendar to remind you to renew your fraud alert in 90 days.
5. Tell the bureaus to stop selling your information to credit services by calling 888-567-8688 or visiting Opt Out Prescreen.com Doing so will reduce but not eliminate the number of preapproved credit card offers you receive.
6. Request a free public records report from ChoicePoint You'll have to print a form and mail it, along with copies of your driver's license and proof of address. Scan the report for addresses and other details not related to you.
7. Take your name off other marketing lists by signing up for ProQuo.com's free service. In some instances, you may have to mail letters or navigate to a marketer's own site to complete your opt-out request.
8. Buy a mailbox that locks or use a post office box. This will help prevent thieves from stealing your identity via paper mail.
9. Buy a crosscut paper shredder and shred junk mail to frustrate dumpster diving identity thieves. *
10. Never click a link from an e-mail message to log into your bank or to any other financial institution. Type the secure site's address into your browser, bookmark it, and use that link to access your accounts. Otherwise, you risk having your identity stolen by phishers.
11. If you believe that you are a victim of identity theft, contact the Identity Theft Resource Center. Volunteers there can walk you through the process of restoring your identity.
12. Get educated. Mari Frank's IdentityTheft.org, the Privacy Rights Clearing House, and the Federal Trade Commission maintain huge libraries of information on how to avoid being victimized, and what to do if it has already happened.
*I recommend that you shred anything with any personal information on it. Theives love your trash! Shred all Bank correspondence & records, insurance correspondence & records, credit/debit card receipts, credit statements, old bills of any kind, unsolicited applications of any type. ANYTHING with your Social Security or drivers license number or your birth date!! And just for luck - anything with an account number on it and your address. Better to wear out a shredder than get your identity stolen from the trash. - Brian
Return to top of page.File a Complaint with the Federal Trade Commission
File a Complaint with the Federal Trade Commission
Phone 1-887-438-4338
or click I.D. Theft
CREDIT BUEARU CONTACT INFO:
Equifax
PO Box 740241
Atlanta GA 30374
1-888-766-0008
www.Equifax.com
Experian
PO Box 2002
Allen TX 75013
1888-397-3742
www.Experian.com
TransUnion
PO Box 1000
Chester PA 19022
1800-680-7289
www.TransUnoin.com
To report a DEAD LINK