Identity Theft

IDENTITY THEFT

HOW BIG IS THE PROBLEM?

Is it a large problem? The National Criminal Justice Reference Service reported that in 2004, 3.6 million households, representing 3 percent of the households in the United States, discovered that at least one member of the household had been the victim of identity theft during the previous six months. Two-thirds of those households lost money due to the theft at an average loss of $1,290.
This problem's not going away. And as I found, it will probably follow me the rest of my life. In talking these issues over with a fraud representative from one of my credit card companies, he said, "Once you take care of it, they'll stop for a while, then just wait. About a year later, you'll start seeing credit issues again." And that's about how long it took.
For a detailed step-by-step approach to understanding how ID theft happens and what you can do to protect yourself, let me refer you to the Federal Trade Commission's webpage on this crime.
Here, you'll find a complete guide on how ID Theft happens, and also what to do if you find yourself the victim of ID Theft, including worksheets, phone numbers of the credit bureaus, etc.
Source:

Ensure Smooth Transaction by Protecting Your Credit Identityby M. Anthony Carr July 14, 2006 see: http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/credit/idtheft.htm for the full article


Jim Lubinsky
Re/Max Affiliates
614-766-5330