Identity Theft
Recovery and Assistance
Resource Provided By: Gargoyle Preferred Investigative Services, LLC
Six Basic Steps to Recovery:
Important background information needed to recover from Identity Theft
The yearly statistics, involving identity theft and its victims, grow every year. Over 30.2 million Americans became victims of fraud in 2006 alone. Further statistical information supports that 1 out of every 10 people will become the victim of identity theft at least once in their lifetime.
Identity Theft and Fraud Statistics:
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Consumer Sentinel Complaint Statistics for 2006
These statistics are representative of information that is used not to scare you but to make you realize that this is something that happens with regularity - and with anything that happens this frequently there is a process that could be developed to help you through this situation.
The FIRST issue at hand is that you need to RELAX.
I know I know “easier said than done” – but it is one of the most important steps so that you can clearly focus on what needs to be done to correct your problem with as little continued stress as possible. Too many times people fly off in a panic once they discover that they are the victims of identity theft. The most important thing to know is that your victimization will affect you much like as if your house had been burglarized – you have been violated and there is a complete myriad of psychological effects that this victimization will cause you. All of your feelings and issues are rational and common; they are the common reactions and you are not over reacting. The thing you have to do is get those feelings under control, and in order, so that you can begin the very focused and specific steps needed to be followed so that you may recover from this victimization.
The SECOND issue at hand is that you need to understand exactly what it is that you want to get done and the specific questions that you are NOT trying to answer while you are trying to recover from your victimization.
In the recovery process you are trying to answer the following questions:
1. “How do I correctly identify myself as the victim of identity theft?”
2. “What specific steps do I need to follow to positively and efficiently correct the problems that this victimization has caused to my financial and personal identity?”
In the recovery process you are NOT trying to answer the following questions:
1. “How did my personal information get compromised?”
2. “How can I make sure the perpetrator goes to jail?”
3. “How could this happen to me?”
4. “Why isn’t (insert law enforcement agency) doing more to help me?”
The second group of questions are very good questions and questions that could be visited as soon as you get the recovery process in check. You may start the process in answering those questions immediately after discovering your victimization BUT you must understand that they are completely separate and unrelated to your successful recovery process. In basic terms the first two questions are the ONLY questions that will be of any assistance in you gaining a successful and complete recovery to your victimization. The other questions may be important; but unless you get a handle on the first two questions, they will only direct your focus away from recovering from the problems your victimization has caused your financial and/or personal identity.
The THIRD issue at hand is that you need to DOCUMENT everything you do in your recovery process.
It is very important that you keep complete and specific documents pertaining to every phone call, mailing and correspondence you are involved with attempting to recover from this victimization. One of the first things that you need to do is get a dedicated notebook and/or binder that you will document every action you are involved with and keep a copy of every letter and/or document you have been given.
The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT Act or FACTA)
The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act is commonly known as the FACT Act or FACTA. The FACT Act was passed and enacted in 2003 and it was created to amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) which was created to , among other things, regulate who is allowed to access your credit report (and personal information) and how those entities are allowed to use that information once it is gained.
The main point, in the FACT Act, is that it is the legislation that allows persons to obtain one free copy of their credit report from each of the three main credit bureaus each year (a twelve month period). In depth FACT Act information, and a copy of the act itself, are available through the links below. The main highlights that effect the majority of people are covered in the points to follow:
FACT Act Information:
The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT Act) – Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Version
The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT Act) Fact Sheet – Privacy Rights Clearinghouse
Your may request your credit report online and get immediate access once you submit your request. You may access this by going to AnnualCreditReport.com and navigating through the site to the Online Request section; or go straight to the Online Request Section by clicking HERE.
The phone number set up, through AnnualCreditReport.com: (877)322-8228
You will go through a verification process to gain access to your credit report
Your credit report will be mailed to you within 15 days and you need to allow two to three weeks for delivery.
You can download the easy to follow – one page – Request Form
[You will need an Adobe viewer to view the request form – Download a free viewer]
Print and complete the form
Mail the completed form to:
Annual Credit Report Request Service
P.O. Box 105281
Atlanta, GA 30348-5281
Your credit report will be mailed to you within 15 days and you need to allow two to three weeks for delivery.
WARNING INFORMATION:
Be carefully when using hyperlinks to travel to web site pages that are requesting you to enter your personal and/or financial information. Hyperlinks can be created, by fraudsters, to elicit your trust and confidence that you are traveling to a reputable site only to lure into a trap that contains fancy graphics and information that tricks you.
Security warning from AnnualCreditReport.com:
Please use the request form authorized by the Central Source only.
Only the Central Source, and its members - Equifax (www.equifax.com), Experian (www.experian.com) and TransUnion (www.transunion.com), have been authorized by law and the government (www.FTC.gov) to provide free credit reports as described on AnnualCreditReport.com. AnnualCreditReport.com cannot ensure your personal information will be kept secure and used for proper purposes if you use forms or provide information to persons, addresses, numbers, etc. not authorized by AnnualCreditReport.com or the entities listed above.
If you are under 13 years of age or you are requesting a credit report for your child under 13 years of age, please refer to mail request for a child under 13 in the FAQs section at AnnualCreditReport.com.
Free Credit Report Information:
Annual Credit Report web site
Annual Credit Report Request Form
Annual Credit Report – Web site information
Annual Credit Report – Credit report ordering information
File a Police Report / Document your victimization
The most important single thing needed in your recovery from identity theft and fraud is the filing of a police report. The bad part is that this one simple thing is usually the one specific thing that causes the victim more grief than anything else they will go through.
The main problem is that most law enforcement agencies do not understand the importance of that simple little case report and most victims do not understand that the creation of a police report just for the sake of creating a police report - with no intention, or ability, to successfully conclude the investigation is hard for a law enforcement officer to understand the need for such a thing.
The following information should help in successfully getting what is needed to be done accomplished in the most stress free manner.
You must first attempt to file an identity theft police report with the law enforcement department that would respond to a burglary at your home residence. This is done in cases when the actual point of theft (or compromise) of your identity is not positively known. There is an assumption that your identity could have been as easily stolen (if not easier) from an area around you rather then outside of your sphere of influence on a daily basis. This also allows you easier (more convenient) access to gathering a copy of your police report because this is the police department in your home area.
You may be confronted with resistance because your particular law enforcement agency may see instances that your identity was fraudulently used outside of that department’s law enforcement jurisdiction and they will immediately assume that you will need to file a report with the law enforcement agency where the fraudulent usage had transpired. This perception is skewed and frankly wrong – in the assumption that they would have no possible jurisdiction when the actual point of compromise is yet unknown and that this point of compromise could not have happen in your jurisdiction.
Wrong as it may be – it may be a reality and our focus will always be on a solution to correcting your problem, on hand, and not get bogged down in the quagmire of uninformed practices or procedures. If that is the case you may determine to which law enforcement agency you could direct your complaint through the below listed web site:
List of Law Enforcement Agencies in the United States
You may also wish to follow up with complaints to each police agency that has been effected by your identity theft through the fraudulent usage of your stolen identity. You may also use the above link to determine the contact information for those particular law enforcement agencies.
You may also check to see what your state has mandated, via legislation, in regards to your local law enforcement agency’s duty to file this law enforcement report and their legal ramifications if they refuse you that needed law enforcement report. You can check this information through your state’s Attorney General’s office. A list of contact information, for all Attorney Generals’ offices, can be found via the following web site:
Complete National Attorney General List
When you are in the process of reporting your victimization involving fraud or identity theft it is important to gather together some important facts prior to contacting law enforcement. If you are reporting that you are the victim of fraud dealing with or involving your credit card, debit card and/or bank account you will need to have the following information available when filing a police report:
The information is all needed for an investigator to follow up your complaint. If the information is not available at the time of reporting your intentions may be assumed as being haphazard at best and an investigator may not get involved (at the very least) or you may be refused a police report (at the very most) because your effort could be assumed as being limited in following through with prosecution. These assumption may be very wrong; but a situation to understand either way.
If you are reporting that you are the victim of identity theft then you must be ready to give the reporting officer the following information for the report:
The North Dakota Attorney General’s Office has developed a very good guide for what information will be important for investigators when filing your law enforcement report. The North Dakota Attorney General’s Identity Theft Affidavit is used by their office for the filing of an identity theft complaint; but victims in outside areas can use this affidavit as a guide for the information they may need and may be asked for when filing an identity theft report.
The Federal Trade Commission maintains a web site with many resources for an identity theft and/or fraud victim. The many resources could be found In the following links
Federal Trade Commission Take Charge: Fighting Back Against Identity Theft – Information Book
Federal Trade Commission Consumer Tips
The one last thing to remember is that when you are attempting to get a law enforcement report filed (no matter what jurisdiction) and there is any discussion in regards to the inability to successfully identify a suspect or that the case may not even be looked at by an investigator – DO NOT enter into any dialogue in that subject matter. You have to remember that your focus here is to recover from this victimization and the first step in successful recover is getting a police report on file. You should ask the law enforcement representative to simply file a “Miscellaneous Informational Report”. Do not worry about the criminal investigation aspect at this time. Once the report is filed, you have received a copy of the report and begun the recovery phase you can go back an influence any need for a criminal investigation should any evidence develop and it could be added to the report on file.
Document What You Have Done and Identify Yourself as a Victim
If there is a single thing that could limit the amount of stress and effort it takes a person to recovery from fraud and/or identity theft it is in the area of properly documenting the activity that you have done and the activity that has been done to you. This one simple step, properly continued through out the entire process, could be the difference between a systematic recovery process with little to no stress and an ordeal that could span years of seemingly doing the same things over and over again.
The need to properly document everything you have done, everyone you have talked to, and everything that has been done to you (in regards to calls, letters or bills you have received) eliminates many of the problems that have historically plagued each and every victim of fraud and/or identity theft through out the years.
Not getting proper documentation of dates, times and people you have communicated with only allows for later conversations with representatives from the same companies that you thought you had taken care of months prior. Members of many companies, and collection services, do not communicate well and in many cases notations, that should have been made, never make it to your accounts. You will almost always get a phone call or a letter from a company or collection agency that is seeking to collect on a fraudulently established account that you have worked to rectify in the past. You spoke with a person at this company two months ago. You were asked to send them a copy of a police report and sign an Affidavit of Fraud. You filled out all of the paperwork and mailed it all into the company representative you spoke with. Two weeks later you received a return phone call and you were told that this debt would be marked as fraudulent and you would not be held responsible for the outstanding balance any longer.
The problem is that no notations were ever made to your account and you now have a representative, from this same company, telling you that there is no record that they ever received any paperwork from you in the mail – let alone a fraud affidavit. You explain that you had been talking with another representative and that you were told that everything was taken care of. The representative, you are talking with now, asks you one simple question: “To whom did you speak to and what date and time was the phone call?”
You can not answer that question and the representative does not believe you and now you are about to start the entire process over again. This is the ultimate source of the infamous “horror stories of identity theft” – If the victims, in those stories, would have had proper and complete documentation of their earlier efforts they would not bat an eye at this scenario because they would have documentation to show everyone what they had done and they would be able to correct the merchants and/or financial institutions errors prior to any further harassment they may offer.
Once you discover that you are the victim of fraud and/or identity theft you need to immediately get a spiral notebook that can be dedicated to correcting this problem. You need to carry this notebook every where you go so you can immediately make any necessary notations and make sure that you completely the documentations, as soon as possible, in the notebook.
Receiving phone calls…
When you receive a phone call from a merchant or a collection agency you must ALWAYS document the date of the call, the time of the call, the phone number that they are calling from and also the number they may give you to call them back, the full name (and business title) of the person you are talking to (document any refusal to give you this information), and the specifics of the conversation for each phone call. The collection agencies must be bound to rules and regulations defined in the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act. Many collection agencies are in violation of this Fair Debt Collections Practices Act and documenting who called, what time a day they called, how many times a day they called and what information was discussed could be enough information and evidence against a collection agency that practices continue harassment and unscrupulous collection tactics on a regular basis. The avenue to pursue these complaints will be covered in a further area of this section of information.
You should never need to receive any more than one phone call from any merchant and/or collection agency attempting to collect on any debt be the debt fraudulent or even authentic and created by you. The minute you are on the phone with ANYONE representing a merchant or a collection agency and they indicate that they are attempting to collect on a debt you need to IMMEDIATELY tell them you will not discuss this situation any further over the telephone and you are specifically telling them that any further correspondence, into this matter, will be conducted through the United States Postal Service (USPS). You will explain that you seek a copy of an itemized invoice of the debt that they are trying to collect and this invoice must include complete account numbers and associated addresses with this (or these) account(s). You are doing this so that each and every communication is documented and there can be no mistaking what was said by either party and all of the needed account information will be available for police investigators should a criminal investigation be conducted.
Phone calls are the hardest mode of communication to properly document unless you write down the information needed immediately – even then it still is a case of your word against theirs fir the most part. Phone calls are also the most intrusive and stress evolving ways to contact someone when seeking to collect money. That is why the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act mandates certain criteria that anyone attempting to collect on a debt must abide by when they make this attempt via the telephone:
This is also why we will attempt to avoid as many phone calls as possible in this process of immediately demanding that all correspondence be conducted via the USPS..
Communicating with the collection process…
You will begin to receive your mailed correspondence and you will now have the time to take your time. You can read over exactly what they are attempting to collect and you have the ability to get information, from other sources, pertaining to what you should do in regards to this information. In some situations you may find that the collection agencies, or merchants, are trying to collect on an account, or debt, that you indeed initiated and you can then work to rectify this legitimate debt. In most situations you will find that the accounts are actually fraudulently established and subsequently used, or legitimate accounts that have been compromised and used fraudulently. You will now have the specifics needed if a criminal investigation is warranted and you can also specifically address the fraudulent account and/or fraudulent purchase information.
When you answer any correspondence you will ALWAYS prepare your return correspondence in writing and mail this return correspondence via certified mail. You need to use certified mail so that you will receive a return receipt each and every time your correspondence is received. This documentation is excellent in cases where you are left to prove that you sent in any requested paper work in the past.
Phrases to use in the letters to collection agencies and merchants…
There are certain things that you must do SPECIFICALLY so that you can work through these problems as quickly and completely as possible.
The first issue involves when you first identify that the account or purchases, that are being attempted to be collected, are fraudulent and you have discovered that you are a victim of fraud and/or identity theft. You need to specifically state:
“I am the victim of fraud and identity theft. The account (or purchases) you are attempting to collect was (were) never initiated by me and was (were) done without my knowledge and/or permission. I am requesting to get specific instructions on what specifically needs to be done so that I can prove this to your company and be released from any liability to this fraudulent debt that I am not responsible for beings that I am actually a victim of fraud and identity theft and not the person who created this debt.”
At the end of each correspondence you need to put the following statement:
“In accordance to the Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act (FACT Act) I expect a written reply to this correspondence within thirty (30) days of your company’s documented receipt of this letter. All correspondence, pertaining to this matter, must be conducted in writing and through the
You will, in return, receive specific instructions and possibly forms to fill out. Follow these instructions, fill out the required forms, and mail your returned reply via certified mail. You must do all of this in a timely manner and as soon as possible after you receive your returned reply. It is very difficult to expect a prompt and organized response from anyone (or any business) if you can not give them the same service in response.
Once you have filled out all of the requested forms and sent in copies of all of the requested material you will add the following paragraph to your final mailed letter:
“I have now successfully completed all that has been asked of me by your company. I am expecting to receive a written response, within thirty (30) days of receipt of this letter, documenting that I am no longer responsible for any debts incurred in regards to the fraudulent account [INSERT ACCOUNT NUMBER HERE].”
Following up on collection agencies not following the rules…
Information Pertaining to Collection Agencies:
Frequent questions pertaining to the Fair Debt Collections and Practices Act – Fair-Debit-Collection.com
Debt Collection Problems? Brochure – Indiana Department of Financial Institutions
Contact the agency reporting inaccurate information on your Credit Report
