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It happened to me - it could happen to you
Story and photos by Every young person looks forward to the day when they can spread their wings and fly away from their parents' nest. For me, the idea of having a place of my own not only meant freedom, but also proving to myself that I could be responsible for my own bills. The key phrase in that last sentence is "my own bills." It seems as though this should be a fairly simple process. A few quick phone calls to the telephone and electric utilities and you're hooked up and ready to go, right? For most, I guess it would be as simple as that, but for me, that customary process turned into my biggest nightmare. It all started when I called my local phone company and the representative asked for my Social Security number (SSN) so that she could run a credit check on me. After leaving me on hold, she came back on the line with some shocking news. Someone had stolen my SSN and used it to severely slander my credit report. Among this grand list of credit blemishes were telephone and electric services I'd never opened, credit cards that I had many times applied for and been denied, a car I'd never even seen and many other possessions I'd never purchased. It's easy for anyone reading this article to put it away with the thought that this could never happen to you. I had those same thoughts. The fact is, if you don't take every precaution to protect yourself, you could also be a victim.
If you are a college student, how often do you use your SSN as your identification number when turning in projects or papers? How many times have you freely given a credit card number to someone you didn't know over the telephone? Do you pay attention to who's behind you when you withdraw money from an ATM or make a credit card transaction? To protect yourself from fraud, knowledge is the best weapon you can have. The crime of identity theft is increasing at epidemic proportion It involves obtaining important portions of someone's identifying information in order to impersonate them and commit crimes in that person's name. Besides stealing your SSN and basic information from you like your name, address and telephone number, identity thieves look for drivers license numbers, credit card numbers, bank account numbers, birth certificates or passports. Every year, thousands of people are victimized by identity thieves who steal millions from banks, retailers and other creditors. Having just some of your identifying information enables these thieves to go on a shopping spree at your expense, obtain and take over your financial accounts, open new accounts, apply for loans, credit cards or social security benefits, rent apartments, establish services with utility companies and much more. Cooperatives do their best to try to prevent this fraud from happening. "On our service application," says Marsha Livingstone, office manager of McDonough Telephone Cooperative, "I think we ask for more extensive information than regular utility companies 10 ILLINOIS COUNTRY LIVING NOVEMBER 1999
do." She added, "We feel the more information we can get from an applicant, the more apt we are of catching something that looks funny." How secure is your Social Security number? SSN's were first issued to the public in 1936 with an assurance from the federal government that the use of the numbers would be limited only to Social Security programs. Unfortunately, in the United States today, the SSN is the record keeping number most frequently used. These numbers are now used for medical records, employee files, health insurance accounts, credit and banking accounts, university identification cards and many other such purposes. Your SSN can be used as your identification number in a wide variety of computer databases, allowing anyone access to your personal information. The invention of the Internet became a welcome mat for thieves, who hack into hard-drives looking for personal information. "The more familiar people are with the Internet, the less secure bank accounts and personal information become," says Tootie Holmes, manager of the Illinois Electric Cooperative Federal Credit Union. Don't be a victim - protect yourself Safeguard your SSN, credit cards, birth certificate and passport. Cancel any credit cards you don't use and make a list of the ones you do. Photocopy the cards you carry with you and leave a copy at home. If they get stolen, you will know the exact numbers to give when you call to cancel them. Shred all mail you receive that contains account, credit, loan or other confidential information on it. Shred all pre-approved credit cards or applications from credit card companies - never just throw these away. These are more dangerous than most people realize. Someone may obtain your pre-approved credit offer and send it in merely requesting a change of address. By the time you discover the card exists, they will have already maxed out the balance and probably moved on to another victim. Never give but your SSN unless it's absolutely necessary (opening a new bank account, tax forms, employment, etc). If someone asks for your SSN number, make them tell you why it is essential for them to have it and what they plan to do with it. "Ask whether or not it will be given to anyone outside the internal office," says Livingstone. "Keep yourself more informed of how that information will be used," she says. Never carry your Social Security card around with you, don't deal with an Internet vendor who asks for it and "never print your SSN on your share drafts or checks," says Holmes. When opening a new account of any kind, never use the last four digits of your SSN, your birth date, phone number or any consecutive numbers as your personal identification number (PIN). Make sure your checks are printed with as little information on them as possible. Your name and address should suffice. It may be a bit of a hassle to pull out your driver's license every time you write a check, but a clerk will be more apt to look at the picture if it's in front of them. If your purse or checkbook were to ever get stolen, you will be thankful you did this. "Get a copy of your credit report printed for you at least once a year," advises Holmes. By doing this, you may catch any suspicious activity before much damage is done. National reporting services such as Experian, Equifax and Trans Union will provide these reports for you. Never give out personal information, such as your birth date, your mother's maiden name, credit card, SSN or bank PIN over the phone, except to someone you know or an established firm. Never order anything over the phone unless you initiated the call and the purchase. "After making an Internet purchase," Holmes says, "re-boot your computer to keep hackers from stealing your credit card number that may be stored in your PC's back-up hard drive." Be careful how much information
ILLINOIS COUNTRY LIVING NOVEMBER 1999 11 you give to someone when using a cordless or cellular phone. Thieves can easily tap into your conversation and gather your personal information. When calling anyone you may be giving personal information to, make sure you use a standard wall phone. A helpless feeling I was very surprised by the lack of cooperation I got from those I turned to for help. It seemed to me that people just weren't taking my frustration seriously. I went to the police, who took a report and then told me that there was really nothing more they could do for me, but that they would keep me informed. They not only kept me totally uninformed, but anytime I came up with something new to add to my report, I wound up talking to someone's voice-mail. They still haven't returned my phone calls. I made an appointment with the Credit Bureau, whose representative insisted she must see me in person. I sat down with a woman who looked at me as though she had never heard of identity theft, and had no idea how to help me. I asked to speak with a manager, but she was too busy to see me. I called Social Security Services to find out how to obtain a new SSN. They informed me of their policy that required me to prove to them that having my SSN stolen caused me irreversible damage - how exactly does one go about that? I felt helpless. Nothing I did seemed to get me anywhere. I finally went to the IEC Federal Credit Union and informed Holmes of my problems. She made a simple phone call to the Credit Bureau and within a few minutes, had everything straightened out with them. It seemed inconceivable to me how fast they put me on the back-burner when I talked to them, yet with one phone call from a credit union representative everything had been fixed. My next step was to report the theft to Experian, Equifax and Trans Union. This should have been at the top of my priority list. It took a few months to get things back on track, but finally after getting a little cooperation, things began to get better for me. I was approved for my very first credit card in May and for a couple of others since then. From victim to victor If your identity is stolen, you may essentially be left on your own to sort out the mess. It is important that you know exactly what to do. Immediately report the incident to the police. Insist that they give you a complaint number. This will make it easier for you to add to your report later, or find out the status of your file. Report all stolen credit cards to the issuer at once and request new credit cards. Follow your report up with written notification, keeping a copy for yourself. Notify your bank or credit union if your checks were stolen and close your account. They may become your biggest ally through this process, keep in close contact with them. Be ready to fill out affidavits of forgery to prove your innocence for banks, credit grantors and recipients of stolen checks. These institutions are victims along with you and may suffer, a financial loss as well. Call the major credit bureaus (see resources) and have them place a security flag on your account. With this, if a credit transaction goes through, it will alert the credit bureau who will then call you to make sure the credit application being processed belonged to you and not to someone else. In the meantime, they will not approve the application until you give them permission to. The downside of this procedure is that you cannot apply for any instant credit. Get a new card, account number and password if you use an ATM card for banking services. Do not renew your old password. The most important thing to remember if you ever fall victim to identity theft is never give up. It may feel like a never-ending battle, but the fight will eventually pay off as you graduate from victim to victor.
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