ATTORNEY'S ADVICE – 10 Things You Must Do If Your Wallet Is Lost or Stolen

Not A Joke!! If you dislike attorneys..... You will love them for these tips. Read this and make a copy for your files in case you need to refer to it someday. Maybe we should all take some of his advice! A corporate attorney sent the following out to the employees in his company.

1. Do not sign the back of your credit cards. Instead, put 'PHOTO ID REQUIRED.'

2. When you are writing checks to pay on your credit card accounts, DO NOT put the complete account number on the 'For' line. Instead, just put the last four numbers. The credit card company knows the rest of the number, and anyone who might be handling your check as it passes through all the check processing channels won't have access to
it.

3. Put your work phone # on your checks instead of your home phone. If you have a PO Box, use that instead of your home address. If you do not have a PO Box, use your work address. Never have your SS# printed on your checks. (DUH!) You can add it if it is necessary. But if you have It printed, anyone can get it.

4. Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine. Do both sides of each license, credit card, etc. You will know what you had in your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to call and cancel. Keep the photocopy in a safe place.

I also carry a photocopy of my passport when I travel either here or abroad. We've all heard horror stories about fraud that's committed on us in stealing a Name, address, Social Security number, credit cards.

Unfortunately, I, an attorney, have first hand knowledge because my wallet was stolen last month. Within a week, the thieve( s ) ordered an expensive monthly cell phone package, applied for a VISA credit card, had a credit line approved to buy a Gateway computer, received a PIN number from DMV to change my driving record information online, and more.

But here's some critical information to limit the damage in case this happens to you or someone you know:

5. We have been told we should cancel our credit cards immediately. But the key is having the toll free numbers and your card numbers handy so you know whom to call. Keep those where you can find them.

6. File a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where your credit cards, etc., were stolen. This proves to credit providers you were diligent, and this is a first step toward an investigation (if there ever is one).

But here's what is perhaps most important of all: (I never even thought to do this.)

7. Call the 3 national credit reporting organizations immediately to place a fraud alert on your name and also call the Social Security fraud line number. I had never heard of doing that until advised by a bank that called to tell me an application for credit was made over the internet in my name.

The alert means any company that checks your credit knows your information was stolen, and they have to contact you by phone to authorize new credit.

By the time I was advised to do this, almost two weeks after the theft, all the damage had been done. There are records of all the credit checks initiated by the thieves' purchases, none of which I knew about before placing the alert. Since then, no additional damage has been done, and the thieves threw my wallet away this weekend (someone turned it in). It seems to have stopped them dead in their
tracks.

Now, here are the numbers you always need to contact about your wallet, if it has been stolen:

1.) Equifax: 1-800-525-6285
2.) Experian (formerly TRW): 1-888-397-3742
3.) Trans Union : 1-800-680 7289
4.) Social Security Administration (fraud line):
1-800-269-0271

Of course, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Lifelock’s service stops identity thieves in their tracks. It can stop the damage caused by an identity thief before it happens by locking your information so that it cannot be used. Their service is backed by a $1,000,000 guarantee. It costs less than $10 per month. Click here for a free one month trial
.

Identity Theft: What to Do if It Happens to You

Imagine this. While on your way to work, you are stopped for a traffic violation. You expect that you will get a ticket, but are surprised when the officer draws his gun and orders you out of your car. You are ordered to get down on your knees and place your hands on your head. You are then patted down, handcuffed and taken to the police station. When you ask why you have been arrested, you are told that you are wanted for attempted murder in another state.

What happened? You could be the victim of an identity theft, where an imposter used your name and personal information to commit a crime. Identity Theft involves far more than just credit. Throughout the country, criminals provide false names and identities to the police in order to get away with their crimes.

It works like this. When a criminal is arrested, the officers ask for their name and personal information. Naturally, they do not have a written ID, so they give a false name and birth-date to the officer. Sometimes they even add a fake social security number. They are entered into the system under the false name, so some innocent person is charged with their crime. When they make bail, they disappear and an innocent person is forced to answer for their charges.

If the victim cannot post bail he or she could stay in jail for more than a month before being released. Jail is a horrible experience. Imagine being confined with robbers, rapists and murderers twenty four hours a day, seven days per week. You have little to do, bad food, and must constantly defend yourself from attacks by your fellow inmates.

Throughout the country, innocent persons are arrested, or otherwise forced to prove their innocence, while the true culprits go free. This may involve court hearings where a fingerprint expert compares the criminals’ fingerprints with those of the victim; or a hearing where the victim’s photograph and physical description are compared to the criminals. You may not even resemble the true culprit. I have seen cases where the innocent person was as much as one foot smaller than the criminal. In one case, the criminal had tattoos on his face and neck, while the victim had none. I don’t know about you, but I have never seen a person shrink by 12 inches or have facial tattoos removed without leaving a scar.

If you find yourself in this situation, here’s what to do.

1. Do not plead guilty or plea bargain your case. If you do this, you are admitting that you committed the crime. You will have a criminal record and will be punished as though you were actually guilty.
2. Get a lawyer immediately. If you have a lawyer, call him or her as soon as possible so they can begin working on your case. If you can’t afford one, tell the police that you want a lawyer. Do not speak to them without one.
3. Report the Identity Theft to the Police
4. Some States Have Identity Theft Passports. These are cards or certificates that you can show to the police to help demonstrate your innocence. To obtain one, you can apply to the appropriate state agency and send them a copy of a police report. In other states, you can request that the State Bureau of Investigation compare your fingerprints with those of the person arrested and issue you a letter stating that your prints are not the same as the person named in the arrest warrant. In other states you can furnish the fingerprint information to the court and have the court issue an order proclaiming your innocence.

Don't Use a Debit Card When Shopping Online

The movie “Gone in Sixty Seconds” showed how a professional car thief could break into, start and drive off in a stolen car in sixty seconds. If you shop online using a debit card, a stranger could steal your identity and empty your checking account in even less time.

Why? The law governing debit card transactions is much, much weaker than the law governing credit card transactions:

• Credit card liability. If you report the theft before the card is used, you have zero liability. If you report it after the card is used, it is capped at $50 per card
• Debit card liability. If you report the theft within two business days, your liability is limited to $50, and some issuers may waive that amount. However, after two business days, your liability jumps to $500. And if you don't report the loss or theft within 60 days of receiving your statement, your liability is unlimited.

Now, both Visa and MasterCard, as a matter of company policy offer some protection. Visa offers zero liability, unless the cardholder was negligent. Mastercard offers zero-liability in the event that the client has not reported two more “unauthorized events” within the past year.

If you choose to use a debit card to shop online, here are some ways to protect yourself.

• Get the seller's phone number in case you have questions or problems.
• Type the seller's name in your search engine to see if there are unfavorable reviews.
• Read the website's privacy policy to see how your personal information will be used.
• Understand the return policies.
• When entering payment information, make sure the http:// changes to https:// in the site's URL address line.
• Don't shop online unless your computer has antivirus and anti-spyware software, and a firewall.

Don't Fall For The Missed Jury Duty Scam

Protect your identity. Don’t fall prey to the jury duty identity theft scam. In this scam, the victim receives a telephone call informing them that they have incurred various civil and/or criminal penalties because they failed to report for jury duty. Since this is the first time the victim has heard about the problem, the scammer offers to re-check their records. They ask the victim for their name, address, phone number, and social security number. This is all of the information needed to commit identity theft. After checking the records, the victim is informed that the court’s records were in error and that the problem will be fixed. In another variation of this scam, they are informed that there is a substantial fine but that they can resolve this matter by pleading guilty and paying a lesser fine. The scammer then offers to let them pay their fine by credit card over the telephone. No court, anywhere in the United States, telephones people who miss jury duty. Even if the caller-id indicates that the call is from a court, it can be spoofed.

10 Steps to Wreck Your Credit

Here are my top 10 ways to wreck your credit

10.Become a Co-Signer – When you cosign for another person, you become completely responsible in the event that the other person defaults. If you cosign for a car loan, and the other person does not make the payments, the car can be repossessed and sold and the lender can look to you to make up any deficiency. Co-signing increases your debt limit and can make it more difficult for you to obtain other credit. Finally, as long as any loan balance remains outstanding, you won’t be able to get off the hook for the loan.

9. Ignore your limits – Get ready to incur penalties, interest and over the limit fees. If you use more than 1/3 of your available credit on an account, your credit score will drop. If you use 80% or more of your limit, even if you pay your balance in full each month, it will show as being maxed out on your report. Under most credit card agreements, they may reduce your limit, cancel your account, or raise your interest rates at any time when they become concerned about your ability to pay it back.


8. Pay It Late – When you make a late payment, you trigger many bad possibilities. First, you will drop your credit score by as much as 50 points. Second, that credit card, as well as all of your other cards may increase your interest rate to their “Default Rate”, your interest rate on all of your cards could increase from a low rate to in excess of 40% each. Under the universal default provision, contained in your credit card agreement, a default on any of your accounts, triggers this provision. As your monthly payments skyrocket, your ability to obtain credit diminishes.

7. Take Advantage of Retail Card Offers – Discounts for new credit applications or no interest, no payment financing is a great deal. These offers can drop your credit score by tens or even hundreds of points overnight. When you apply for credit, your score drops. When you use the retail credit, you are usually only approved for slightly more than the amount of your initial purchase. This way, you can get credit and max it out at the same time. This is a double whammy, you lose points for asking for credit as well as using it.


6. Get that Free Souvenir. When you are at a sporting or other event, apply for the cards that give you sports memorabilia such as duffel bags, towels, or hats. Even better, get the card with your favorite stock car driver’s picture on it. That $1.00 souvenir is easily worth a 50 or more point drop in your credit score.

5. Use Finance Companies/ Payday loans. Rather than using your card, go to a finance company or a payday loan. Not only will you get to pay much higher interest rates, up to 99.5% per year, you can make yourself look even worse to other lenders. The credit bureaus consider the amount of credit as well as its source. Simply put, people who use finance companies and payday loans are far more likely not to pay their bills than those who use banks and more legitimate credit.


4. Be Careless With Your Identity. If you aren’t doing a good enough job wrecking your credit, there are plenty of criminals who are delighted to help you do it. Don’t shred important documents, make sure your checks have your drivers’ license number and social security number printed on them, ignore your credit report, and mail all of your payments from home. Also, respond promptly to e-mails requesting your personal information from any bank or financial institution, especially ones written in poor English or those from institutions where you have never done business.

3. Out with the old, in with the new. Cancel your older cards, and those for which you have a good payment history. The credit bureaus look at the age of an account and the length of good payment history when assigning a score. Simply put, longstanding accounts with good history give you more points than new accounts with bad history.


2. Apply for lots of credit at once. When planning a major purchase, go all the way. If you are looking to get a house, you might as well apply for a new car loan, student loan and some credit cards as well. Each time you apply for credit, the lender requests a credit report. Multiple inquiries made within 30 days from the same industry count as one inquiry. Inquiries from other industries also count. Each one can lower your score by as much as 30 points, so make sure to ask for as much credit from as many different industries as possible at once.

1. Quit paying your bills. Wait until your accounts go into collection before dealing with them. Better yet, make your creditors sue you before paying. It can take creditors several months or years to sue you and they may be willing to settle for less money. However, public records, such as judgments and bankruptcies can harm your credit for up to 10 years.

Dateline to Catch and ID Thief

Dateline NBC rebroadcast its "To Catch An Id Thief" episode. If you mised it you can see the internet version here. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17822386/

Big Three Credit Bureaus Oppose Credit Freeze

A recent USA Today article described the effectiveness of credit freezes for preventing identity theft. 37 states and the District of Columbia have enacted laws which permit a consumer to place a freeze on their credit report. Until it is lifted, the freeze can block access to the credit report and score by creditors as well as by the consumer themselves making it impossible for anyone to borrow money in the consumer's name. The Consumer Data Association, a tradegroup which represents the three major credit bureaus, has opposed freezes. They claim that freezes can hurt a consumer's ability to obtain emergency credit. However, the credit bureaus make millons of dollars annually by compiling and selling the consumer data, and freezes hurt that business. In 2006, Equifax earned $166.3 million dollars from the sale of consumer data. In 2006, Experian had $756 million in total sales. 21% of that revenue ($152.8 million) came from the sale of consumer data. Transunion is privately held so they do not have to release these figures. To learn how to place a freeze on your credit report and score, go to this website.

Expert Tips to Avoid Identity Theft

Marketwatch.com has a useful article regarding the ways identity theft and computer security experts protect themselves from identity theft. “Catch Me If You Can” identity theft expert Frank Abagnale and Other Security Experts discuss their techniques for avoiding identity theft. Here is a summary of their recommendations and a few of my own:

Use a Credit Card Credit Card issuers do more to protect their customers from fraud. To protect your credit rating, pay the bill in full each month. Also, if you do use a debit card, have the merchant run it as a credit card so that you do not give up your Personal Identification Number.
Also, if you have the debit card transaction processed as a credit transaction, you may fall within some of the protections offered to credit card users.

Use a service which monitors all of your credit accounts and notifies you by e-mail whenever someone is trying to use your credit.

Shred your documents with a micro cut shredder which reduced the information to sawdust sized particles. Abagnale recommends even shredding the back pages of catalogues so that dumpster divers cannot access your retail accounts.

Opt out of creditors’ information sharing arrangements. You can do it by telephone or by signing up at http://www.optoutprescreen.com/.

Set up your main banking accounts so that they do not permit transfers to other institutions. This way should a thief get your account information, they will be unable to transfer your money. Also, monitor your accounts frequently.

If you are going to shop online, do not use links created by search engines, type the address in your browser yourself. Some of the links are created by thieves to steal your credit card information.

Don’t write checks at stores. They are insecure and thieves can obtain account numbers, routing codes, addresses and other personal information simply by copying them. Also, there are techniques for altering checks by washing them with chemicals to change their amounts. They may also be scanned and altered.

Have a two-way firewall on your computer so that it blocks information from entering your computer and makes it harder for hackers to hijack your machine and send information out.
Don’t store your passwords on your computer.

Read more here

Identity Thieves Use Stolen SSN#'s to Create Fake Identities

Identity thieves have started using stolen social security numbers to create fictional persons. In what authorities have termed "synthetic identity theft", thieves have started creating fictional persons. They use these identities for a variety of purposes incuding, employment, obtaining credit and open bank accounts. This is a much harder type of theft to detect, because the frauds are not committed in the victim's name. Oftentimes they do not even appear on credit reports.

Identity Thieves Create Fake Identities

In a new twist to identity theft, thieves have started creating "synthetic" identities by stealing a person's social security number and "tying" it to a different name in order to create a new, fictional person. This is much harder to detect because the frauds are not committed in the victim's name so they do not readily appear on their credit reports. At the same time, the social security number may appear in many different databases, including those used for background checks. This type of theft is also much more difficult to recover from, because there is no way to