Identity Theft Tools
Lanny Britnell
March 10, 2008
The crime of identity theft is changing and thieves are developing new methods to acquire identities. Today thieves want more than just your money. In 2007, credit card fraud accounted for 23% of the reported identity theft cases, whereas non-financial types of fraud such as; employment fraud was 14% and government documents / benefits fraud was 11%. In addition, you must now worry about criminal, medical and synthetic identity theft. Today, thieves can do more harm in financial and non-financial aspects of your life with your social security number.
Like with any crime, the thieves are in the lead and enforcement and services are always trying to catch up to them. Your personal information is in many places other than your credit file that are beyond your control. Many of the identity theft tools you hear about on TV, radio and read about in the newspaper and magazines can be misleading, confusing and while they may serve a function, they are also behind the times. So let´s take a look at some of the available services.
A fraud alert is a message you place on your credit file to notify creditors to verify your identification before extending credit in your name in case someone is using your information without your consent. A credit grantor is not required by law to adhere to a fraud alert, pay day loan companies advertise "no credit check", which bypasses a fraud alert totally. A fraud alert only helps prevent ´new account´ fraud and only last for 90 days. If you are an identity theft victim you may request a 7 year extended alert with a copy of an identity theft report you have filed with a federal, state or local law enforcement agency. If you are an active duty military consumer, you may add a one year alert to your report. A fraud alert is a free service of the credit bureaus, however, some firms charge you to do this service for you. It does not stop ´account takeover´, which is when a thief will change the mailing address for your billing and then run up a large debt in your name. A fraud alert will not prevent Identity Theft or alert you to any non-financial type of identity theft..
Credit monitoring is an identity theft tool in only one manner. While it can not prevent any element of identity theft, it can inform you that a thief may be working behind the scenes. This information will help you limit the damage. Credit monitoring will not prevent Identity Theft or alert you to any non-financial type of identity theft.
Security freezes are another tool. Security freezes are designed to prevent a credit reporting company from releasing your credit report without your consent. However, you should be aware that using a security freeze to take control over who is allowed access to the personal and financial information in your file may delay, interfere with or prohibit the timely approval of any subsequent request or application you make regarding a new loan or even extension of credit at point of sale. Security freezes will not prevent Identity Theft or alert you to any non-financial type of identity theft.
Identity scoring is the newest technology in early detection of possible identity theft. This complex process uses artificial intelligence software that scans thousands of data bases for the use of a person´s name and social security number in combination with other personal data, such as an address, or driver´s license number. The result is an ID Score that will provide valuable information to an ID Recovery Specialist who can alert the individual if the instance of these personal identifiers is used inconsistently or changes suddenly.
What we know about criminals who use identity theft as a way of life is that they will go through certain steps to create a false identity using the consumer´s information, or parts of the information. They will make an attempt to change their mailing address on certain financial accounts to delay notification that something is amiss. The very tactics that the thieves use to set up their victim can now alert us to the potential fraud. In some cases action can be taken to avert the identity theft before it happens.
As identity fraud usually precedes other types of fraud (such as credit card fraud), this type of proactive alert system is critical to mitigating the extensive, and expensive, damage perpetrated after an identity is stolen and manipulated. Given the considerable lag time between when an identity is compromised and when that event is discovered, this service is a critical component in the defense against identity fraud.
Last but certainly not least is recovery from identity theft. Many firms offer some type of solution or monitoring but few offer in-house fully managed recovery. With the problem of identity theft reaching into areas such as medical and criminal, to recover from these issues requires a degree of experience and expertise. Some programs offer the ultimate in-house fully managed recovery service. This is when an ID Recovery Specialist through the use of a limited power of attorney deals your creditor, social security administration and others on your behalf to solve these issues and provide you with recover. In-house fully managed recovery is a must to any quality service.
Like with any crime, the thieves are in the lead and enforcement and services are always trying to catch up to them. Your personal information is in many places other than your credit file that are beyond your control. Many of the identity theft tools you hear about on TV, radio and read about in the newspaper and magazines can be misleading, confusing and while they may serve a function, they are also behind the times. So let´s take a look at some of the available services.
A fraud alert is a message you place on your credit file to notify creditors to verify your identification before extending credit in your name in case someone is using your information without your consent. A credit grantor is not required by law to adhere to a fraud alert, pay day loan companies advertise "no credit check", which bypasses a fraud alert totally. A fraud alert only helps prevent ´new account´ fraud and only last for 90 days. If you are an identity theft victim you may request a 7 year extended alert with a copy of an identity theft report you have filed with a federal, state or local law enforcement agency. If you are an active duty military consumer, you may add a one year alert to your report. A fraud alert is a free service of the credit bureaus, however, some firms charge you to do this service for you. It does not stop ´account takeover´, which is when a thief will change the mailing address for your billing and then run up a large debt in your name. A fraud alert will not prevent Identity Theft or alert you to any non-financial type of identity theft..
Credit monitoring is an identity theft tool in only one manner. While it can not prevent any element of identity theft, it can inform you that a thief may be working behind the scenes. This information will help you limit the damage. Credit monitoring will not prevent Identity Theft or alert you to any non-financial type of identity theft.
Security freezes are another tool. Security freezes are designed to prevent a credit reporting company from releasing your credit report without your consent. However, you should be aware that using a security freeze to take control over who is allowed access to the personal and financial information in your file may delay, interfere with or prohibit the timely approval of any subsequent request or application you make regarding a new loan or even extension of credit at point of sale. Security freezes will not prevent Identity Theft or alert you to any non-financial type of identity theft.
Identity scoring is the newest technology in early detection of possible identity theft. This complex process uses artificial intelligence software that scans thousands of data bases for the use of a person´s name and social security number in combination with other personal data, such as an address, or driver´s license number. The result is an ID Score that will provide valuable information to an ID Recovery Specialist who can alert the individual if the instance of these personal identifiers is used inconsistently or changes suddenly.
What we know about criminals who use identity theft as a way of life is that they will go through certain steps to create a false identity using the consumer´s information, or parts of the information. They will make an attempt to change their mailing address on certain financial accounts to delay notification that something is amiss. The very tactics that the thieves use to set up their victim can now alert us to the potential fraud. In some cases action can be taken to avert the identity theft before it happens.
As identity fraud usually precedes other types of fraud (such as credit card fraud), this type of proactive alert system is critical to mitigating the extensive, and expensive, damage perpetrated after an identity is stolen and manipulated. Given the considerable lag time between when an identity is compromised and when that event is discovered, this service is a critical component in the defense against identity fraud.
Last but certainly not least is recovery from identity theft. Many firms offer some type of solution or monitoring but few offer in-house fully managed recovery. With the problem of identity theft reaching into areas such as medical and criminal, to recover from these issues requires a degree of experience and expertise. Some programs offer the ultimate in-house fully managed recovery service. This is when an ID Recovery Specialist through the use of a limited power of attorney deals your creditor, social security administration and others on your behalf to solve these issues and provide you with recover. In-house fully managed recovery is a must to any quality service.
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