Tips to Deal with Online Identity Theft

Once you realize that you are a victim of online identity theft, take the following steps, and make sure to keep a record of the details of all of your conversations, and to take copies of all of your correspondence.

1. First you would need to place a fraud alert on all your credit reports. Such fraud alerts can stop an identity thief from opening further accounts in your name. There are two types of alerts- an initial alert extended for a period of 90 days, and an extended alert which covers a period of seven years. To have either of these alerts placed on or removed from your credit report, you may have to furnish proof of identity, like your social security number.

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Once the fraud alert is in place, you are entitled to order free copies of all your credit reports. If you ask, you will notice that only the last four digits of your social security number (SSN) would appear on your credit reports. You would also have to review your credit reports. Review your credit reports carefully, and check if information like your SSN, your address, your name and initials or your employers are correct. Check out inquiries from companies that you know that you have not contacted, accounts that you are sure you did not open, and debts against your accounts that cannot be explained. You would also have to lock your credit cards, notifying your credit card agency.

2. Secondly, close all accounts that you believe to have been fraudulently opened or tampered with. Please call someone in the security/fraud department of the company and speak with them. Follow up the same in writing, with copies of supporting documents sent alongside. It is important to always notify banks and credit card companies in writing.

Keep a file of all correspondences and enclosures. When you open new accounts, use new personal Identification Numbers(PIN) that cannot be easily guessed. If the identity theft online has resulted in charges or debits on your accounts, please ask the company for the required forms to dispute these transactions. Once the identity theft dispute with the company has been resolved, ask for a letter from the company which states that the company has indeed closed the disputed accounts, and has also discharged all fraudulent debts.

3. Thirdly please file a report with your local police or with the police in that community where the identity theft occurred. Then, make sure to get a copy of the police report, or at least the number of the report. This could help deal with creditors who require proof of the crime.

4. Lastly, file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC): You would be helping FTC officials around the country to detect and track all such unscrupulous identity thieves, by sharing your identity theft complaint with them.

Therefore we note that spy ware and identity theft is fast becoming a reality that we have to face and deal with. To be able to counter such identity theft spy ware and ad ware spy ware identity theft requires following a set of preventive measures designed for this purpose. Once the necessary steps to counter this menace of spy ware identity theft and online identity theft have been taken, the world of the Internet would become much safer and cleaner.

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Identifying and Dealing with Online Identity Theft

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