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Identity theft. Can you feel your blood pressure raising? There can be nothing that will be fully one hundred percent sure in protecting your credit, but let's talk about some things you need to keep in mind so it doesn't happen in the first place or happen again if you've already been a victim. It isn't too complicated. You need to deter the identity criminals and be sure to protect your information like you would a marriage certificate or precious family photos. You then need to keep track of what is going on in your credit report so you can detect any dubious information. Next you need to be sure to defend your identity right away when you find a problem or suspect one. Identity theft is potentially very severe and is a vicious crime. It can affect you as long as a violent crime can, and even in an emotional way as well because it can be very frustrating. How does it happen to you? What happens is your most personal information is used and abused by a criminal without your permission (of course) to commit all kinds of fraud and other misdeeds. Once again, you can't be fully guaranteed that your identity can't be damaged, but you can greatly diminish your exposure. What to do if your identity has been stolen (meaning you will likely need credit repair)? We'll discuss the steps the Federal Trade Commission recommends. First, contact the credit reporting bureaus and ask for a fraud alert to be placed on your report. The nice thing about a fraud alert is that it tells all creditors they must contact your prior to starting any type of new line of credit or changing your current accounts. You only really need to contact one bureau for this to be done; they are then responsible in advising the other bureaus on your behalf. After you have this in place, you're allowed to get credit reports at no cost. You can also ask to have only the last four digits of your social security number to appear on your credit reports. Next it is recommended that you close all of the accounts you know or suspect haven been affected with or started illegally. Then an important step you don't want to miss is to make a police report with your local police agency. Be sure you contact the proper law enforcement agency in the city / area where the crime took place, otherwise you'll just be directed to them anyway. Be sure to take down the report number as it will be required by your creditors as proof there is a crime and that you're not just trying to get away with something. The next step as you get moving in your credit repair is to be sure to file your complaint with the Federal Trade Commission. They have a huge file of cases that various law enforcement agencies use to investigate the crime. It also has the benefit of helping them learn a lot more about what kind of identity theft crimes are happening so not only your problem can be more quickly resolved but maybe it will keep it from happening to someone else. Educating yourself on credit repair is a must in today's society.
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