Getting your identity back
1 in 6 Americans say
they’ve had financial information stolen. Half of all identity
thefts are carried out by friends or family.
Identity theft can be devastating. Here’s how to restore your name.
Signing autographs and posing for pictures were all part of the job for
Dan Benish. As a defensive lineman for the Washington Redskins in the
early 1990s, Benish often made public appearances where he did
grip-and-grin meetings with fans. Yet one woman did more with his
signature and photos than Benish banked on. She started posing as his
wife. Armed with the NFL player’s signature and a wallet full of
doctored photos that made it seem as if they were married, the faux fan
purchased cars, secured a mortgage, opened credit accounts and more—all
in the guise of Mrs. Dan Benish. The identity thief eventually got
caught and went to jail. And Benish, who was compelled by the experience
to become a consultant and identity theft expert, spent years trying to
reclaim his identity. “I was like a lot of victims—I didn’t think it
could happen to me,” says Benish, who now lives in Atlanta, Ga. “But
what I’ve learned is it can happen to anyone at any time. Rich, poor,
young or old.” Indeed, while few Americans sign autographs and pose with
strangers, Benish’s experience exemplifies the many ways that
thieves swipe millions of identities each month. The crooks go on lavish
spending sprees, tap medical benefits, create fake employment histories,
and even commit crimes in the name of someone else. Maybe you. While
thieves are stealing identities at a record clip (32 million in the
first six months of 2006 alone), consumers, financial institutions and
insurers are fighting back with new safeguards and increased awareness
that have reduced the severity of losses. And state-of-the-art identity
recovery services help victims piece their credit—and lives—back
together.
Who’s a Target?
Consumers can take action to protect their identities from
would-be-thieves. The first step is to clearly understand
that—regardless of financial standing— anyone can be a lucrative target
for identity thieves seeking anything from medical benefits to a
pseudoidentity that offers cover for a crime spree. “I have so many
people who tell me, ‘I don’t buy things online or I don’t have a
mortgage, so I’m not at risk,’” says Michael McCoy, an identity fraud
consultant and co-author of
Who is You? The coming epidemic of identity theft
(The Consortium Books, 2006). “I ask them have you ever been married?
Have you ever gone to the doctor? Have you gone to college? Have you
applied for a credit card? If the answer is yes to any of those, there’s
a possibility your data is at risk. And if you’re not one of those, then
maybe people are going through your garbage or clearing out your
mailbox.” Experts recommend shredding all mail and documents that
contain personal information. Don’t carry Social Security cards or other
sensitive documents in a wallet or purse, and use a secure postal box
instead of putting bill payments into a roadside mailbox. “It’s amazing
how many people still carry all their personal information in their
wallet,” McCoy says. “I had a young man just call me who had lost his
wallet. In it he had his driver’s license, Social Security card, medical
insurance card and student ID. Someone on the street could easily sell
that package for $3,000.”
Not if, When
McCoy
claims the problem has escalated to the point that it is not a matter of
if
your
identity is stolen, it is
when.
Even the most conscientious consumer can be hit. Witness the 26.5
million veteran and active duty military personnel whose names and
personal information fell into the hands of thieves last June. The
criminals stole a laptop computer and external hard drive from the U. S.
Veterans Administration. Realization that identity thieves will always
exist has led to increased emphasis on raising awareness, reducing
losses, and establishing identity recovery services that help victims
navigate the twisted path to restoring their name and credit. Some
insurance carriers have recognized the potential risk to customers and
have responded.
Lifting the Burden
Indeed, the theft itself is just the beginning for those whose
identities have been stolen. It can take months or years to fix the
problem for those who attempt to clear their name on their own. Over
time, victims can invest more than 60 hours and hundreds or thousands of
dollars into the restoration effort. The process is a tangled maze for
consumers. Police are sometimes hesitant to file a report on the theft,
which can delay the recovery process. Companies may not follow laws
concerning consumer disputes and customer rights. And, on occasion,
creditors re-report identity theft after a problem has already been
resolved, creating confusion and putting red flags on credit reports.
Working as a team
It is best to have a good system in place for storing documents and
sensitive data before an identity theft occurs. The bulk of the
restoration process typically takes three to six months. A thorough
credit and identity check is then performed 120 days later to make
certain there hasn’t been anymore suspicious activity. If no problems
are detected, the case is considered closed. If there are more red
flags, the entire process begins again. “Generally speaking, the
situation gets under control,” Cernak said. Unfortunately, once your
identity is out there, you’re never quite sure where it has traveled on
the dark recesses of the globe. It’s a matter of being cognizant and
vigilant about what is going on with your credit and personal
information on a regular basis.”
‘I got my life ’ back
Mari Jo* of Fairfax, Va., experienced the benefit of identity recovery
services like those provided by ERIE. The 34-year-old waitress was paid
by direct deposit one Friday afternoon last year. On the following
Tuesday, she called to check her account balance only to learn the
account had been emptied out. Over the next few days, thieves wrote 13
checks on her account, totaling an additional $3,500. “I tried to handle
the situation myself for the first few days,” she said. “I didn’t get
very far.” Mari Jo soon connected with a licensed investigator who
started unraveling how her identity had been stolen. He quickly
determined that the thief had duplicated her checking account and then
printed counterfeit checks using her account number, routing number,
name and address. Two months later, the thieves struck again, using her
identity to obtain a credit card and run up a $5,000 debt.
Peace of mind
Getting people’s lives back is what identity recovery coverage is all
about. And it offers something else as well—peace of mind. Former
footballer Dan Benish wishes he would have had the benefit of identity
recovery services when he was piecing his identity back together
several years ago. He took on the time-consuming task of contacting all
the agencies and clearing up his credit reports. “When I went through
this I had no guidance at all,” Benish says. “It was a very uneasy
feeling. People need to know that even if you do all the right things,
you can’t be 100 percent sure that your identity won’t be stolen. You
have to monitor your credit and make sure you have some type of managed
identity recovery coverage.”
•
Phil Friday’s Identity Theft Prevention
Tips
Phil Friday, ERIE’s
feisty fraud-fighter, usually spends his days cracking capers involving
crooks.
But when Phil isn’t working the fraud beat, he’s trying to get the word
out about how to avoid getting scammed. One of your most precious assets
is your good name. Here are tips on how to keep it and prevent others
from traveling to Tahiti on your dime.
Don’t carry your Social Security card or anything bearing the number
with you. Store it in a safe place. If a business asks to use it for
something, request that they use another number instead.
Outgoing bills should be mailed from post office collection boxes, not
your home mailbox. A locking mailbox or a P.O. box will help protect
incoming mail.
Choose your PINs carefully—no birth dates, names of pets, or consecutive
numbers. Do not use any part of your Social Security number or anything
that could be easily guessed. Memorize your PINs.
Never just throw sensitive material into the trash. Shred everything
that contains personal information. This includes ATM receipts,
insurance forms, credit card bills, bank statements and pre-screened
credit offers.
Use a credit card, not your debit card, when shopping online. Set aside
a special card with a low limit to use just for online shopping. The
lock symbols at the bottom of your browser window will tell you if a
site is secure.
Unless you are the one who initiates the contact, do not give out any
personal information over the phone, online, or through the mail.
Thieves may pose as banks, credit card companies or anything else.
You now have the right to three free credit reports per year, one from
each credit bureau. You can access your credit report through
www.annualcreditreport.com.
Check your credit regularly and be on the lookout for any suspicious
activity. Investigate anything that appears suspicious on your credit
report.
•
Scott Westcott is the editor of
In Sync
magazine and a professional writer. His work has appeared
in many national magazines including
Inc., Outdoor Life, Woman’s Day, Psychology Today,
Cooking Light and Family Circle.
Illustrator James Shepherd lives with his wife, two boys in the town of
Muskego, WI. His work is generally found on packaging for high energy
toys for kids, or high energy snacks for kids. |
