Identity theft is someone stealing your identity information like

• Name
• Age
• Date of Birth
• Birth place
• Mother’s maiden name
• Father’s name
• etc..

and use these details to commit

1. Financial identity theft (using an other’s identity to obtain goods and services, for example Credit cards, car loans, or even mortgages)
2. Criminal identity theft (posing as another when apprehended for a crime, this is very difficult to rectify because of difficulties with clearing your criminal record)
3. Identity cloning (using an other’s information to assume his or her identity in daily life, this way the criminals can avoid being caught, by hiding using stolen id)
4. Business/commercial identity theft (using an other’s business name to obtain credit, ruining the legitimate businesses chances of obtaining credit)

There are so many ways identities can be stolen, for example

1. Dumpster diving (going through rubbish to obtains discarded credit cards, bank statements, discarded receipts etc)
2. Publicly available (Through web sites etc, where your personal information is available for anyone. )
3. CV (Most of your identity information can be obtained from your Curriculum Vitae, some people foolishly include very personal details like Mother’s maiden name, your passport number etc..)
4. etc, there are so many ways for identities to be stolen….

But some people unknowingly give away their identity !. Or other third parties do it for them !!! The most amazing cases I’ve come across are

1. Posting a full scan of the front and back page of your passport, on a free to access photo site !
2. Some news papers (even national and international) including pictures of credit cards without blanking out numbers etc
3. Giving away your bank account / credit card information over the phone in public places like, in trains, bank reception help desks etc….

If you even remotely suspect that your identity has been stolen, it’s always a good idea to check your credit report, which can be done for free from here

Reference

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Identity_theft

This news story US cracks ‘biggest identity theft ring’ from the the US illustrates the seriousness of identity theft.

Many major retailers have been affected.

It’s quite interesting to see how the perpetrators have used wireless networks to gain access to sensitive financial data.

Mortgage Companies and Identity Theft

To check your credit file report, you need to individually write or send a correspondence to the three major credit reporting agencies like the Experian, Equifax and Trans Union. The information that you need will be your address where you have lived within the last six years. In addition, you should also provide a postal order or a personal cheque, to each of the said credit reporting agencies.

After you have applied and requested an order for your credit file, you should expect the document after fourteen days. Your credit file report will then come with a helpful booklet. The handbook will primarily explain key aspects to you such as, ways in knowing what to do in case of errors within the file. If you have some complaints you can send it to them and expect a response within twenty-eight days. However, if the response doesn’t give you satisfactory results then you can appeal by writing to the Office of Fair Trading.

The Office of Fair trading will then inspect your claim and contact the proper agency or department to resolve your concern. Rest assured that they will do their best to act promptly to all request sent to them by consumers.

So how does exactly do you quickly fix your bad credit? These acts were created by the FTC with the aim of protecting the consumer. The Fair Credit Reporting Act and the Fair Debts Collections Practices Act. These two acts made credit repair possible. These acts made creditors legally responsible for information found in your credit report.

So, if you think erasing a negative credit with your mini credit report would be too difficult, think again. The truth is you can repair your credit yourself quickly without involving too much money. You can do it by simply adding positive information to your mini credit Report. This is usually done by simply getting a secured credit card with much lower interest rates, a gas or department store card, or even a small installment loan. In order to regain a good credit rating all you have to do is to pay these small time loans. Through this, you can build up a good credit history that will be very beneficial in clearing and developing good credit report, score and standing.

The detailed information that is arranged on your credit report should be periodically reviewed at least once a year. This is to verify your current information and to correct any possible mistakes. To ensure that everything is accurate and error free, you can request a credit report coming from each of the three major credit bureaus. However, these credit reporting companies won’t exactly tell you everything you need to know. Thus, when obtaining a free credit report it would be best if you have it together with your credit score. Also ensure that before you decide in ordering your free credit report once a year you must have all the necessary information with you. In this way you can avoid the hassles in requesting for your free annual credit report.

Obtaining free annual credit reports online are convenient but you should take heed in inspecting them because many cases of inaccurate information and identity theft have been reported. A simple error could be labeled as a credit risk. Thus, there is a need for you to regularly check your credit report so you can make sure that you can be approved when requesting for a better loan.

Protect your young ones from scammers online. Yes, you heard it right. Children who are too young to enter into a transaction are now the main targets of online identity theft. Their accounts are being used, thus ruining their credit records. You do not want that to happen to your child do you? But do not worry. Stricter rules have been implemented in order to prevent these things from happening. There are certain documents needed before you order a credit report for a minor. Protect yourself from errors in your credit report. Protect yourself and your child as well from identity fraud online.

Credit experts strongly advise all citizens to inspect the information given by the bureaus on a regular basis. In this you will not only spot and correct credit report errors, you will also have the chance to determine identity theft like strange accounts or a change mailing address and other data.

One rampant method of identity theft is the unauthorized use of credit of children who are too young to enter into a contract. These illegal actions were minimized when the site started to require the following documents from someone who is ordering a report for a minor child.

1. birth certificate
2. Social Security Card
3. proof of guardianship

Nowadays we have to be quite vigilant regarding our identity when it comes to transactions online. The internet has sure made our life easier but it does not mean that we have to be contented with that. We have to protect our selves from those who are bound to steal our identity online. We can do this not only by regularly checking our free credit reports online but also the reports of our family as well.

Certainly, everyone is very concerned with the flow of their finances and would make it a point to keep a record of how much money is coming in their bank and how much money is flowing out. This is a good way of managing your finances. While it is extremely important to check the balance amount left in your bank account, it is also equally important to know how your credit rating is going. And the so called “My annual credit report” represents the credit worthiness you hold.

My Annual Credit Report shows the credit worthiness of a person. It is a document showing the record of all your credit payments and purchases. These were accumulated by the credit bureau to determine your credit rating. Or simply know if you are a good payer or not? This document is the very thing you need as you wage in the battle field of requesting for financial assistance.

This report collects and registers every transaction you have made and all accounts that you have. All of this information will be listed in your credit report for up to 7 to 10 years.

The credit score is very important especially if you are applying for a loan, may it be a home loan, a car loan, a student loan. The lender would need to view your credit report before granting you the financial assistance you are requesting for. Hence, it is strongly suggested that you have an updated copy of your annual credit report all the time.

The sources of your free credit report do not necessarily send free credit report copy. You have to take the initiative and finish all the necessary requirements to get a copy of the free report. One of the things you need to do is to go online and research for information. Reliable resources for this kind of information are government websites. You can apply for a request online. This is the most convenient way of acquiring your free credit report. Otherwise, there is a phone number you can contact if you prefer to have it done through phone. TransUnion is said to process requests faster and easier than the two which are Equifax and Experion. Another means of requesting you credit information is by means of writing a complete form at the back of Annual Credit Report Request.

We have now more options in choosing the process for requesting our annual credit reports. We need to consider our time and resources in order to pick which method suits best your need and lifestyle.

It is a good thing that acquiring free annual credit report has been made accessible to the public. In order to make the most out of this opportunity one has to be informed well of the different process in the application system. Keep in mind the following facts for they can make or break your request for financial assistance.

Online scammers are popping in the online community like mushrooms. You should always be very keen in order to save yourself from being a victim of these swindlers in the World Wide Web. Beware of those who are sending email or people giving you a call stating and claiming that they are from a Consumer reporting agency.

If the free annual credit report has been sent to you and you have detected errors, it is a must to call the attention of the people concerned. Do not hesitate to send back the document to the agency and point to them the specific discrepancies you have seen so they can take appropriate actions.

You should also take the initiative to report not just errors but other unforeseen and undesirable events that may have come upon your credit history document. If you have suspected that there was an unauthorized access made, report it immediately to the proper agency. These annual free credit reports are very crucial. You can not let other people have access to it. Aside from you the only allowed institutions to have access in it are insurance and other financial companies both private and public. But you can be sure that with them your information is in good hands.