Latest Victim Of Idenity Theft: ME!

[Prudence]

Originally Posted by Betty

Do everything in writing. Ask for proof that you owe this debt. Which we did and rec'd a letter, if you could call it that. It was more of a piece of paper that said: You owe us $x amount of money because you owed MCI. Nothing else. No account number. No dates of service. Nothing.

This happened to Ryan. He has this alleged debt on his credit, and that's all they sent him - a one-line Excel spreadsheet with his name, a date, and an amount. That's it. Nothing about what it was for or anything.

We contested it with the credit reporting agency, but apparently that "proof" is enough for them, and they refused to remove the debt. I'm sure there's a way to thwart the reporting agency, but I'm not sure what it is.

[€uroMeinke]

Originally Posted by Prudence

This happened to Ryan. He has this alleged debt on his credit, and that's all they sent him - a one-line Excel spreadsheet with his name, a date, and an amount. That's it. Nothing about what it was for or anything.

We contested it with the credit reporting agency, but apparently that "proof" is enough for them, and they refused to remove the debt. I'm sure there's a way to thwart the reporting agency, but I'm not sure what it is.

I'd suggest copying the spreadsheet and adding the words "paid" in the next cell and submit that as evidence of payment.

[Isaac]

A few more details:

http://zapppop.livejournal.com/5713.html

[RStar]

Wow, that sucks big time! I'm always so afraid of that happening......

I hope they got him before he did any real damage. Good luck!

Oh, and I thought you changed your name to zappppop!

(actually I really thought it was Issac for real, that's all I've ever known you as). Congrats on getting it changed!

[BarTopDancer]

That is really sucky

[DreadPirateRoberts]

How do I request a "fraud alert" be placed on my file?

You have the right to ask that nationwide consumer credit reporting companies place "fraud alerts" in your file to let potential creditors and others know that you may be a victim of identity theft. A fraud alert can make it more difficult for someone to get credit in your name because it tells creditors to follow certain procedures to protect you. It also may delay your ability to obtain credit. You may place a fraud alert in your file by calling just one of the three nationwide consumer credit reporting companies. As soon as that agency processes your fraud alert, it will notify the other two, which then also must place fraud alerts in your file.


· Equifax: 1-877-576-5734; www.equifax.com

· Experian: 1-888-397-3742; www.experian.com/fraud

· TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289; www.transunion.com

[Nephythys]

http://www.lifelock.com/

[Snowflake]

Oh, that really stinks. But, the good part is, they got the guy, and here's hoping he did not have enough time to do any real severe damage to your credit history.

I'm sorry, I'm sure all the red tape and hoop jumping will be a PITA, but in the long run, it will be worth it.

[Kevy Baby]

Originally Posted by blueerica

Yeah, there's a lot you can do about it - first thing I'd do (and I'm sure someone's told you) is to get a credit report from all three big agencies (Experian, TransUnion, Equifax). It's easy to do yourself (you don't need one of those other hokey companies to do it), and you get one free every year.

When I checked my credit a couple of weeks ago, I recall something to the effect that when you have been hit with a ID theft (as Zap was) that you are eligible to get free reports once per quarter.

Originally Posted by Not Afraid

https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp

Anyone know if that is the proper site? I'm not just typing my SS# into any ole web site.

I used that site recently to get my reports. Probably took me about 15 minutes to get all three - mainly because of the security steps.

[Cadaverous Pallor]

At the library we send people to the collection agency for large, way late fines. Most people are freaked out at the concept that we can mess with their credit. What's more shocking is the amount of people that say "whatever, send me to collections, I'll deal with it eventually." It's not often, but it does happen, and I'm always put off by these people. I make sure to say "just so you know, this will affect your credit rating" but that doesn't phase them. They must have awful credit to begin with.

BTW - Checking your credit too often can actually worsen your credit rating, so don't overdo it.