Identity theft and credit card fraud are among the fastest growing crimes in the U.S. It is estimated that between billion to billion in credit card fraud is commited every year. The ways theives are able to gather the personal identifications of the victims of this fraud vary. They include stealing credit cards, stealing from mailboxes, going through the trash of the victims, and simply looking over the shoulder of victims.

However, there are several steps you can take immediately if your credit card becomes lost or stolen, or if you find bills in your mail that you do not recognize or charges you did not authorize.

The first step you should take is to initiate a fraud alert on all of your credit card accounts. There is a common misconception that by doing this it will prevent you from obtaining any further credit cards or financing in the future. This is simply untrue. What a fraud alert will do is require creditors to contact you by telephone before any new accounts are opened in your name. It will also require creditors to contact you by telephone before making any requested changes to any existing accounts, such as increasing your line of credit.

To place a fraud alert on your accounts, contact any one of the three major credit bureaus:

Equifax: 1-800-525-6285

Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN

TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289

The credit bureau you contact will then contact the remaining two bureaus and all three will send you a current copy of your credit report, free of charge. When you receive these reports, look them over carefully. Note any accounts you didn’t authorize or debts you don’t recognize. Also check that all your personal information, such as name, address, and Social Security number are correct. If any incorrect or fraudulant information is found, contact the credit bureau immediately to have it removed. Then continue to check your credit report on a regular basis to insure no further fradulant activity is found.

After initiating a fraud alert, you should then immediately close any accounts you think may have been violated and submit an ID theft affidavit to the credit card companies in question. You should then file a police report with your local police department and also file a case with the Federal Trade Commission.

Identity theft is a federal offense with stiff penalties for those who dare to attempt it and are caught. By following these simple steps you can protect your credit and prevent yourself from becoming a victim of this very serious crime.

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Best answer:

Answer by Jerry Lee
I expect most identity thieves will be interested in your bank account number, your Social Security Number, and your email address, in about that order. Presumably, they could use other information to get to the above, but if you are not Bill Gates, why bother?

You might get a little more “junk” mail, for having your address on the net, but I expect not much. If you are getting lots of spam e-mail, you may wish to change your email address, or have some sites blocked .

Give your answer to this question below!

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Let’s talk a little about the impact of viruses, Internet related threats and how they effect your computer and privacy.

First off, is it really necessary to have anti-virus and firewall software installed on your computer? Afterall, with only 200 new threats created daily, who really cares? Is it really that big of a deal if hackers are able to access your computer, look through your data, user names, passwords, and account information? Seriously, is identitiy theft really that important to you? Or what about the viruses that cause your computer to go so slow you think you will never be able to load your Internet browser. Why should you worry about malware that can cause your system files to be destroyed or your favorite family photos stored on your computer to disappear in an instant? Does it concern you that your email can be sent to thousands of spam sites and pop-ups are all over your screen offering you software to fix your computer?

Any idea what causes these types of issues? How about malware, which broken down is short for malicious software such as viruses, trojans, worms, rootkits, spyware, adware, I think you get the point. Oh wait, I forgot, you have a customized super sized computer that is not vulnerable to viruses. When I hear people tell me this, I tend to wait and act surprised when they come back saying, “oh no, I got a virus”.

It does not matter how sophisticated your computer is, you are vulnerable to malware! If you don’t have internet security software installed on your pc, you are at risk of being infected with viruses, spyware and even hackers that want nothing more than to steal your information.

So what should you do now that you already have viruses on your computer? Well you could download the latest internet security software and hope it will detect, delete or repair the infected files. Many times you will have to do a re-format of your harddrive which will cause you to lose everything on your computer so be sure to save what you want first. If you do a re-format, it has to be done properly, or it will not delete the viruses. I would recommend you to contact your local computer shop.

Although Internet security and anti-virus software will protect you against these threats, no software is guaranteed to block 100% of all malware. Many of these threats are found on websites that you visit and files that you download such as video’s, music and pictures. If you use peer to peer file sharing, I am sure you already know all about viruses and spyware. Want a hint? Stop downloading from those sites and you will stop getting viruses.

Okay, here are a couple internet security software programs I recommend that offer the best protection, features and support. First is Security Shield 2008, this is a rebrand of F-Secure and is absolutely amazing and easy to use. Another is Kaspersky Internet Security, another well designed software program with hourly updates.

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Best answer:

Answer by KATRINA A
It may come to that point one day…………..

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Identitiy Theft: America’s Fastest Growing Crime

Price:

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Best answer:

Answer by carolyn n
well, if they’re telling youthat you are entitled, then you must be entitled to something. didn’t you have some cleaning up to do with regard to your credit after this guy stole it? then, if so, you are entitled to the damages and whatever aggrevation he caused you..time off work, i would think, being denied credit somewhere because he messed up your credit…maybe you had to pay a higher interest rate because he messed it up somehow by taking out loans or credit using your name…look at your credit report. you get them free once a year. you can do it online.

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Technorati Tags: Damages, Identitiy, More, Restitution, Than, Theft, victim

LifeLock is a proactive identity theft protection agency, specializing in the prevention of identity theft rather than the reporting of it. It was founded in 2005 and is already considered the industry leader in the rapidly growing field of Identity Theft Protection.

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Based in Tempe, Arizona, this company is led by experienced and successful entrepreneurs and industry experts. It is backed by Bessemer Venture Partners which is one of the leading venture capital firms in the world. The company’s management team and staff did solid research for more than three years which they used to develop their system. They also built relationships with the right organizations, including the Better Business Bureau and TrustE. The company’s goal was to lock down every individual’s private information so no one except that individual can approve its use.

LifeLock offers proactive identitiy theft protection at only ten dollars per month and with a one million dollar service guarantee.

The company works by asking credit bureaus to set free fraud alerts on your behalf once that you confirm that you have been or are about to become a victim of identity theft. This is usually done through automated systems. It also requests your name to be removed from lists of pre-approved offers for credit cards and/or insurance. This is because this type of pre-approved offers is one of the many ways identities can be stolen. It also orders your free credit reports on your behalf from the major credit bureaus which are sent directly to you. Even lost or stolen wallets will no longer be a problem because a specialist will help you contact each credit card, back or document issuing company to cancel your affected accounts, and complete the paperwork and necessary steps to replace your lost documents.

Identity theft is one of the nation’s fastest growing crimes. But you don’t have to be next, and with LifeLock, you can guarantee that you will definitely not be next.

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Best answer:

Answer by Gabriel & Co.
(_o_) <--- Before prision

(_O_) <--- After prision

Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!

Technorati Tags: charge, charges, happen, Identitiy, Theft

Best answer:

Answer by cyanne2ak
YES it is Identity theft. You need to hire an attorney & force the SSA to do something about it. It CAN affect you and cause serious problems. ALSO, send an ENLARGED color copy of both your SS Card AND State ID to the security company’s human resources department. Send it with a letter explaining the problem and ask them to investigate and correct the problem. Save a copy of the letter and send the 1st, with copies of ID, “Return Receipt Requested” – this will prove they received the letter, etc. Go see an attorney NOW. Run a credit check on yourself & alert your bank to this problem as well.

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