Potential Identity Theft - Advise Please!!
I didn't think much about it at first as I think the thief is well....let's just say...of questionable intelligence and lineage. But, now, I'm thinking, if he sold it to someone a little brighter, I could have problems. Should I start cancelling credit cards? change my bank account? alert the credit buearu? Has anyone had any experience with this sort of thing? Any advise you could offer would be helpful. Thanks! |
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| oh my gosh, that is scary. I have no helpful advice. is there a way the laptop may come back to you? |
| I doubt it will ever be recovered. Unfortunately, our local PD doesn't have the best track record for recovering stolen property. Not said to be mean, as I have several friends on the force. But, it is what it is.
I guess my only recourse is to change all my accounts. YUK!  |
| I would definitely report it to any credit card companies, change all your passwords for banking, alert your bank etc. Better safe than sorry. |
| Yes, I strongly recommend that you do all of those things. I don't think you have to worry about identity theft because they did not steal forms of ID -- drivers license, passport, SSN, etc (unless that info was on your computer). But you should change your account numbers to be sure that a person can't get access to your accounts and records, make unauthorized purchases, etc. I would also get copies of your credit report in 1 month and then every few months to make sure nothing unexpected has occurred. If you do any online banking or bill payment, I would also change those passwords (in case they are linked to files on your computer). |
| Tammy, Do as Valerie said. We had two office computers stolen. At first we thought no big deal.....but because all of our checks were written on them, they had our soc. #'s addresses etc. Definately call the credit people they can put a flag on your name and watch if anything seems weird. We were lucky, so far nothing has occured! |
| Hi! I'm so sorry to hear that you've been robbed. Losing all of that information is awful!
Most important question - was your Social Security number on your laptop anywhere? If not, then your primary concern is in protecting your existing accounts. Your banks and credit card companies will change account numbers for you quickly. However, if you've lost your SS# you need to do more damage control. I went through this a few years ago - I had my wallet stolen, and my social security number was on my health insurance card. I cancelled all of my accounts right away, but the thief used my information to open new accounts at 7 different retail stores. Retail stores are the worst - since salespeople are incented to open new accounts, they don't seem to check ID very closely. They also tried to open a new Discover card but the people at the major credit card companies are much better about fraud control, Discover called me before the application was ever processed. Took quite a while to clean up the mess but the law is on your side as long as you document everything and process fraudulent claims quickly. Here are a few things that were lifesavers in my case: 1. Get a police report 2. Keep copies of everything 3. You have 90 days to file a claim if fraudulent activity takes place on your account. Do it as soon as possible. Used registered mail so you can prove your file within the deadline. 4. Contact the credit bureaus and put a Fraud Alert on your account. You only have to do it once, all three share data. The downside to this is that you will never be able to apply for instant credit again. I came to the conclusion that my security was worth it. 5. The credit bureaus will send you a copy of your credit report as part of the process. Review it and make sure there are no other fraudulent accounts out there. Good luck! Sue |
| Thanks everyone. I really appreciate all the advise. You're right, Stacey - better safe than sorry. I've started the process with the credit card companies, put a fraud alert notice in with the credit bureaus, and will be opening new bank accounts this aftn.
Passwords are changed. I requested copies of my credit report be sent to me next month and then in three months, like Valerie & Sue suggested. I'll put a tickler in my files to follow up with it then. Sorry to hear you've had a similar experience Darcy. I'm glad that you've not had any problems from it. Thanks, y'all. I really do appreciate both your advise and concern! |
| There is now an "Identity Theft File" that your information can be put into. When you file a police report they should enter your information into this file and then give you a Password to use. This password will distinguish you as the victim and not the thief. (This is a law enforcement password, it does not deal with banking or credit issues unless the police become involved. ie. if a store or the bank calls the cops because your info is flagged and being used, they will know that you are a good guy not the bad guy.)
Make sure that your bank and credit card companies are aware and contact the social security administration and local DMV to put a flag on any transactions that may happen. (Like someone trying to gain a new id card with your info.) |
| I had not even thought about the DMV, Maxmm. Thanks for the tip!! |
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