How to Detect Identity Theft

Identity thieves can drain your bank account, ruin your credit and accumulate thousands of dollars of debt in your name before you know they've stolen your identity. They can reopen accounts you closed or open new accounts in your name. The sooner you detect identity theft, the better your chances are for restoring the damage done.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Check your credit report on a regular basis for accounts you didn't authorize, companies you didn't contact or debts you can't explain. You can request a free annual copy of your credit report from each agency that can be mailed or downloaded online.
2. Use a credit monitoring program like True Credit to detect identity theft. The company provides you email alerts when a company requests a credit check, opens a new account or provides information to the credit reporting agencies.
3. Reconcile your bank statements, your credit card statements and your bills every month. Look closely for charges you didn't authorize or for discrepancies between your records and the statements.
4. Set a limit on the amount of money that can be spent per account per day. If you need to spend more than your limit, you can call the company and request approval to go over the limit.
5. Put a password on your credit accounts for purchases over a certain amount. Retail stores can call the credit company and you can verbally identify that you are the one making the purchase.

Tips & Warnings

• Check with the Better Business Bureau for complaints or claims against a credit monitoring service before using their services.
• Some credit monitoring services only monitor one credit reporting agency.