How to Monitor Your Credit Report for Identity Theft

Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in the United States, with nearly 10 million Americans falling prey each year, costing victims nearly $5 billion.

There are many precautions you can take to limit the chances of identity theft, including keeping close track of credit card bills, shredding unwanted credit card offers received in the mail and never disclosing personal financial information in response to unsolicited e-mails. 

However, thieves continue to find new ways of gaining access to financial information without your knowledge. According to recent statistics, the identity theft cases that involve the greatest financial loss are caused by fraudulent activity that went undetected for more than six months.

As such, the most effective way to prevent or limit the damage from identify theft is to uncover the crime as early as possible. And the best way to uncover identity theft is to monitor your credit report.

Free Monitoring Available
Monitoring your credit report allows you to spot signs of fraudulent activity such as a credit card being opened in your name for which you did not apply. There are many services that monitor your credit file and notify you when unusual or suspicious activity appears on your credit report. Typically, these are offered through banks or by the credit reporting agencies themselves. Monitoring services can charge anywhere from $40 to as much as $150 per year.

The advantage of a using a commercial service is that they likely will monitor your credit reports more frequently than if you did it yourself. If you decide to hire one of these services (that is, not one offered by the three major credit bureaus – Experian, Equifax and TransUnion), be sure to check out the company with your local Better Business Bureau, consumer protection agency, and state Attorney General.

On the other hand, why pay for what you can get for free? Experian, Equifax and TransUnion all allow consumers to download their credit report at no cost once per year, as mandated by law.

There are several ways to obtain your free credit reports. You can call a toll-fee number, (877) 322-8228, to order your reports. You can access and download them online at www.annualcreditreport.com. Or you can print out an application form from the Website and mail in your request.

The credit bureaus do not share information, so each report may or may not include the same information as the other reports. Thus, if you feel you may be the victim of an identity theft, you should order all of the reports at the same time so you can check each one. Otherwise, order a different one every four months so you can monitor your credit periodically throughout the year.

Note that you can get a free report at any time, regardless if you have already ordered your yearly quota, if you have reason to believe you are the victim of identity theft.

What You Should Monitor
What should you look for when monitoring your credit report?

First, check the accuracy of your personal information, such as your name, address and employment information. If there is an address listed where you never lived or an employer for whom you never worked, contact the credit bureau to straighten it out.

Verify that each of your accounts lists accurate information on your activities. Look closely for any suspicious activity, as this is likely where you will find evidence of fraud. For safety, close any accounts that you no longer use as they can easily be taken over by an identity thief.

Examine the inquiries on your credit report to confirm that they are in response to actions you undertook, such as signing up for new cell phone service. If you find inquires unrelated to any of your recent activities, be suspicious.

Make sure you contact the credit bureau to fix any errors you find, no matter how small. You should receive amended reports within a week after the changes take effect.

If You Are Victimized
If you find evidence of identity theft, immediately contact the fraud units of each credit bureau and request that a “fraud alert” be placed on your credit file. Order copies of your credit reports to ensure that no further fraudulent activity is occurring.

Contact your bank, creditors and credit card companies, by phone and in writing, to report the crime and to change your PIN codes and passwords. Request that they contact you immediately if there is any unusual activity on your accounts. Be sure to keep detailed records of everyone you speak with during the fraud investigation.

It also is helpful to report the crime to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), either online at www.ftc.gov or by calling 1-877-IDTHEFT. The FTC has counselors to assist identity theft victims with resolving financial problems resulting from ID theft.

A few states allow consumers to set up a security “freeze” on their credit reports so that they can only be accessed in very limited situations, preventing thieves from gaining further access. To date, Georgia does not allow this.

For more information on protecting yourself from identity theft, visit the FTC’s Web site at www.consumer.gov/idtheft.

Credit Bureau Contact Information

Equifax
1-888-766-0008
www.equifax.com

Experian
1-888-EXPERIAN (397-3742)
www.experian.com
 
TransUnion
1-800-888-4213
www.transunion.com