I will add links and update this blog as I find qualified information and links that would be helpful to others, including laws applicable to identity fraud.
Identity
Theft Recovery Steps - Federal Trade Commission:
and:
Know
Your Rights – Federal Trade Commission:
Identity
Theft Warning Signs – Federal Trade Commission:
Action
to Take if Your Information is Lost or Stolen – Federal Trade Commission:
Identity
Theft & Fraud - US Department of Justice:
The US Department of Justice website has this information
for the public:
What Should I Do If I've Become a Victim of
Identity Theft?
1. Contact the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to report the situation, whether Online,
2. By telephone toll-free at 1-877-ID THEFT (877-438-4338) or TDD at 1-866-653-4261, or
3. By mail to Consumer Response Center, FTC, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20580.
Under the Identity Theft & Assumption Deterrence Act , the Federal Trade Commission is responsible for receiving & processing complaints from people who believe they may be victims of identity theft, providing informational materials to those people, & referring those complaints to appropriate entities, including the major credit reporting agencies & law enforcement agencies.
For further information, check the FTC's identity theft Web pages . You can also call your local office of the FBI or the U.S. Secret Service to report crimes relating to identity theft and fraud.
You may also need to contact other agencies for other types of identity theft:
1. Your local office of the Postal Inspection Service if you suspect that an identity thief has submitted a change-of-address form with the Post Office to redirect your mail, or has used the mail to commit frauds involving your identity;
2. The Social Security Administration if you suspect that your Social Security number is being fraudulently used (call 800-269-0271 to report the fraud);
3. The Internal Revenue Service if you suspect the improper use of identification information in connection with tax violations (call 1-800-829-0433 to report the violations).
Call the fraud units of the 3 principal credit reporting companies:
Equifax: [external link]
1. To report fraud, call (800) 525-6285 or write to P.O. Box 740250, Atlanta, GA 30374-0250.
2. To order a copy of your credit report ($8 in most states), write to P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374-0241, or call (800) 685-1111.
3. To dispute information in your report, call the phone number provided on your credit report.
4. To opt out of pre-approved offers of credit, call (888) 567-8688 or write to Equifax Options, P.O. Box 740123, Atlanta GA 30374-0123.
Experian [external link] (formerly TRW)
1. To report fraud, call (888) EXPERIAN or (888) 397-3742, fax to (800) 301-7196, or write to P.O. Box 1017, Allen, TX 75013.
2. To order a copy of your credit report ($8 in most states): P.O. Box 2104, Allen TX 75013, or call (888) EXPERIAN.
3. To dispute information in your report, call the phone number provided on your credit report.
4. To opt out of pre-approved offers of credit & marketing lists, call (888) 5OPTOUT or write to P.O. Box 919, Allen, TX 75013.
Trans Union [external link]
1. To report fraud, call (800) 680-7289 or write to P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92634.
2. To order a copy of your credit report ($8 in most states), write to P.O. Box 390, Springfield, PA 19064 or call: (800) 888-4213.
3. To dispute information in your report, call the phone number provided on your credit report.
4. To opt out of pre-approved offers of credit & marketing lists, call (800) 680-7293 or (888) 5OPTOUT or write to P.O Box 97328, Jackson, MS 39238.
Contact all creditors with whom your name or identifying data have been fraudulently used. For example, you may need to contact your long-distance phone company if your long-distance calling card has been stolen or you find fraudulent charges on your bill.
Contact all financial institutions where you have accounts that an identity thief has taken over or that have been created in your name but without your knowledge. You may need to cancel those accounts, place stop-payment orders on any outstanding checks that may not have cleared, & change your Automated Teller Machine (ATM) card, account, & Personal Identification Number (PIN).
Contact the major check verification companies (listed in CalPIRG-Privacy Rights Clearinghouse checklist [external link]) if you’ve had checks stolen or bank accounts set up by an identity thief. In particular, if you know that a particular merchant has received a check stolen from you, contact the verification company that merchant uses.
Find Out More About Identity Theft & Fraud
Note: All Web sites to which these pages cross-link are included as a service for the reader. Cross-links to non-governmental sites don’t constitute an endorsement or approval of their content, or of the organizations responsible for that content, by the Department of Justice.
Government
United States:
California Department of Consumer Affairs
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Trade Commission - Congressional Testimony
Federal Trade Commission - Fighting Back Against ID Theft
United States Postal Inspection Service
United States Secret Service
Canada:
Ontario Information & Privacy Commissioner [external link]
Non-Government
United States:
American Association of Retired Persons [external link]
Better Business Bureau - Alert [external link]
Better Business Bureau -- Eastern Massachusetts/Maine/Vermont [external link]
CalPIRG [external link]
Center for Democracy & Technology [external link]
National Association of Attorneys General [external link]
National Consumers League [external link]
National Fraud Information Center [external link]
Privacy Rights Clearinghouse [external link]
Other Helpful Organizations:
Non-Profit
ID Theft Center – Free No-Cost Assistance:
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