Fact Sheet 100A
FINANCIAL IDENTITY THEFT- MORE COMPLEX CASES
A supplement to
Fact Sheet 100
- Checking Accounts
- Someone Working as You
- Government Benefit Fraud
- IRS Issues
- Debt Collection
- Bankruptcy Issues
- Fraudulent Change of Address
- Student Loans
- DMV Issues
- Domestic Identity Theft
- Medical Identity Theft
- Resources
There are five major categories of identity theft: financial, criminal, commercial, governmental, and cloning.
Depending on the severity and complexity of your case there may be varying degrees in the difficulty of clearing your record.
Clearly a stolen credit card is easier to take care of then someone who is using your SSN to work and has filed a bankruptcy with your name.
Fact Sheet 100A will take you through the more difficult financial identity theft cases.
In addition we suggest you look over all our victim assistance fact sheets for any that you may helpful on other topics.
You can always refer to
Fact Sheet 100 for more basic information on financial identity theft.
1.
Checking Accounts
:
Please read
Fact Sheet 126, which goes through the problem in detail.
You should file a police report with any of the following situations.
Please note: There is a new federal program that regulates financial institutions and check fraud called Check 21.
There are several types of checking account issues:
-
Stolen, washed or duplicated checks- Report them to your bank immediately.
Close the account.
Remember to get a “Letter of Closure” from the bank since merchants may still accept the check thinking it is good.
Businesses have no way of knowing if an account is closed until days after accepting the check.
-
Synthesized checks- With a good computer and printer anyone can put your name on a check and create a bank account number.
Until there is a national program that assists merchants to recognize closed or fictitious accounts immediately, this will continue to be a problem.
To clear your name, you will need to send merchants letters proving that the check never was yours.
The affected bank should assist you with appropriate documentation.
-
Cashing a stolen or counterfeit check- In this situation someone asks you to cash a check they write to you or endorse to you.
Never agree.
There are check-cashing stores throughout the
- Warrants for your arrest- In some states, a bounced check may generate a warrant for your arrest. You need to clear the account problem with the bank and merchant, and also have that bank or merchant contact law enforcement to drop all charges. You will need to follow-up with the issuer of the warrant (usually the District Attorney or States Attorney) to be assured that the warrant is withdrawn. Don’t forget to get a “Letter of Clearance” that you will keep permanently.
To report fraudulent use of your checks call: (numbers may change without notice)
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ChexSystems: (800) 428-9623 (they will provide a free report annually)
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Certegy/Equifax: (800) 437‑5120
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International Check Services: (800) 526‑5380
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SCAN: (800) 262-7771
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TeleCheck: (800) 710‑9898 (they will provide a free annual report)
Under a new federal law, you now have a right to obtain any reports that these companies compile about you.
2.
Someone working as you:
SSA work records and tax problems due to this action
-
Contact the Social Security Administration and ask for a copy your Personal Earnings and Benefits Estimate Statement. (Click here to download the application and fee list) Check it over to see if it is correct and does not show more jobs than you have had.
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Contact the IRS Taxpayers Advocate- not the IRS. This agency is a consumer-oriented assistance center, and will help you determine if someone is using your SSN to declare income, or if there has been some mix-up. Their number is 877- 777-4778.
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Contact the Office of Inspector General which is the fraud department of the Social Security Administration. Send them any documentation they may require in order to have these frauduelnt work places removed from your record. In most cases you can contact your local OIG office or you can call 800-269-0271
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Contact the Franchise Tax Board or the Secretary of State for the states that the fraudulent work places are reported in. Send them any documentation they may require.
-
Send all documentation Certified Mail Return Receipt.
3. SSA or state benefit problems : (assuming this is due to identity theft or clerical error)
- Federal benefit problems- This situation can occur due to clerical errors, stolen mail or identity theft. Speak to the duty agent of the Office of the Inspector General of the Social Security Administration. They will initiate an investigation. If you aware of an older person or someone who is deceased and having problems due the theft of Social Security benefits, the OIG will assist you. You may also talk with your elder abuse department of the local police department.
-
State or county benefit programs- Most of these agencies have a fraud investigation unit.
Talk with your case manager for a referral.
4. IRS issues : Some victims find out about an identity theft case when the following issues occur. In all of these situations, the initial step is to contact the IRS Taxpayer Advocates at 877-777-4778. Additionally, you will also want to contact the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) of the IRS and file a complaint for investigation.
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Child support payments are deducted from your paycheck (in this case you may need to contact the county or state that is garnishing payments).
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The IRS contacts you about taxes owned due to an additional source of income not reported by you, such as a second job.
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The IRS says that your child’s SSN is already listed as a dependent on another tax return.
5.
Debt Collection:
Never pay a bill that you don’t owe.
ITRC has written a Fact Sheet for this problem.
See ITRC
Fact Sheet 116 for complete details.
6.
Bankruptcy issues:
All bankruptcies need to be addressed by the Office of the Trustee of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court.
Under the new federal law, bankruptcies declared by an imposter can be reversed.
This is a situation in which you may wish to consult an attorney to make sure the paperwork is filed correctly.
7.
Fraudulent Change of Address:
If you suspect mail theft or mail fraud, contact the U.S. Postal Inspectors (PI) at 800-275-8777.
When you move, a change address form is sent to both the new address and old address.
If a thief is trying to change your mailing address this is a warning to contact the USPI immediately.
A phone number to immediately contact someone is provided on the form you receive.
8.
Student Loans:
If it appears that someone has applied for and received a student loan in your name without your approval you need to take action quickly. If you already have proof of this action, call the U.S. Dept. of Education Inspector General’s Hotline: (800) MIS-USED (800-647-8733).
Also, contact the three Credit Reporting Agencies and order copies of all three of your credit reports.
These reports will be free, since you are a suspected victim of identity theft.
We highly recommend calling all three of the agencies individually and not relying on the automated system of one CRA to notify the other two CRA’s.
Check them over carefully.
Report any fraudulent activity to the police by filing a police report.
A police report will help you to establish your status as a victim and provides you specific rights under state and federal laws.
Unfortunately some parents (child id theft) do this and the police mistakenly say that since the victim benefited from the loan, it is not a crime.
That is not true.
Any use of your information without your consent is fraud and a crime.
If you are unsure of how to proceed due to family issues, call the ITRC at 858-693-7935 and ask for a Special Victim Advisor.
9.
DMV issues:
When two people appear to be using the same driver’s license number, you need to speak with the fraud investigator with the DMV or Department of Public Safety in your state or in the state where the problem is occurring, NOT a clerk at the local office.
This action will start an investigation to determine the real license holder.
Should you lose your driver’s license, you will need to go back into your local office and have it replaced.
Bring identifying information with you so that they can ensure you are the true licensee and not an imposter.
10.
Identity Theft in Domestic Situations:
Each case is unique. Identity theft in a domestic situation has a varied emotional and financial impact on the victim. This requires the assistance of a specially trained advocate.
Please contact the ITRC at 858-693-7935 and as for a Special Victim Advisor.
11.
Medical Identity Theft:
You might find this has occurred if you receive a bill for medical or pharmacy services you were never treated for or you have been alerted via an Explanation of Benefits from your health insurance company of the use of your health insurance (assumedly by a thief).
Refer to
Fact Sheet 130 and Fact Sheet 130A for this type of case.
STOP THE THIEF
1.
The first step is to place a fraud alert with the three major credit reporting agencies (Equifax, Trans Union, and Experian).
(see
ITRC-Debix message)
The fraud alert lasts 90 days and may be renewed.
However, with a police report you can extend it to seven years.
It is advisory in nature only and is not a completely reliable form of protection since some companies refuse to honor them.
2.
If your state has a credit freeze law, look carefully at that option.
Please check the State and Local Resource Map on our website to see if your state has a freeze law in effect. The basic steps to take are outlined in
Fact Sheet 124.
Freezing your credit reports is a strong action to take.
It will change your ability to get instant credit because it can take up to 3 days to thaw a report.
However, in many ways this is the only true proactive step you can take to stop a thief.
REDUCE STRESS
See ITRC
Fact Sheet 108.
Please note that cleaning up the mess may take time.
It will not be resolved overnight and you must be mentally prepared to attack your case with the least amount of stress.
Find a healthy stress reducer and build a support team to help you during this period of your life.
CHECK ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Federal Trade Commission
- This publication is titled Taking Charge. You can get a copy sent to you or download this document at http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/idtheft/idt04.shtm . You can also call them at 877-IDTHEFT and find additional information at www.consumer.gov/idtheft
www.identitytheft.org Source of a
resource book and video written by an attorney and id theft expert, Mari Frank.
Please remember to indicate that the
The primary contact numbers for the CRAs
are:
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Equifax: Call (800) 525-6285. TDD: (800) 255-0056
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TransUnion: Call (800) 680-7289. TDD: (877) 553-7803. Fraud victims can also email fvad@transunion.com but we recommend that you do not send Social Security numbers via email if avoidable.
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Experian : Call (888) 397-3742
FBI/NW3C Internet Fraud Complaint Center:
www.ic3.gov
Sample Letters:
Copyright February 2007, Identity Theft Resource Center®, all rights reserved.Created by the ITRC.
This fact sheet should not be used in lieu of legal advice. Any requests to reproduce this material, other than by individual victims for their own use, should be directed to ITRC.