Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in the United States today. It consists of wrongfully impersonating someone, usually for financial gain. Typically it is accomplished either by “assuming” the reputation of the subject person and establishing credit in his/her name, or stealing their actual credit card information, making purchases (even cars!), and leaving the victim with the bill and obligation. A person could steal someone’s social, earn money on a 1099, and then leave the victim with the IRS bill. No small headache there! Or it may be a waiter in a restraunt who jots down a card number and makes a small puchase here or there, which may even go unnoticed by the victim.

A person usually steals an identity by using knowledge of personal information about the subject. Some people prefer the term "identity fraud" since the "thief" doesn't deprive the owner of his identity. Others believe the thief does deprive the owner of his identity (i.e. good reputation) by replacing his reputation with the thief's evil reputation. Many uses of the term focus on the act of acquiring the personal information necessary to perpetrate the impersonation. No matter what you call it, it’s a painfully emotional experience to go through. The hassle is endless.

The most usfull piece of information an identity thief wants to get his or her hands on is your social security number. This is much better than just getting one credit card. Having your social allows the theif to open many cards in your name and to really “trash” your financial life. Those who sell social security number lists earn a fortune just for passing the lists along. It could be a list of college students, or of bank clients.

Just for the record, rest assured that at MoreMortgage we guard your information with the utmost care and secure servers. Our infrastructue is through our own intranet, and we do our utmost to keep files safeguarded on our own servers. Also, and truly free of charge, we’ll pull your credit any time (every six months is the normal recommended time) if you just call in. A classic example of an identity theft is where John gets a loan from ABC Bank by pretending to be Paul. John uses personal information about Paul that he got by either stealing mail right out of a mailbox, or from garbage, or by “phishing,” which means infiltrating organizations that store large amounts of personal information – such as a mortgage bank that leaves it’s files lying around at night for anyone (even the cleaning crew) to see. John then does not pay back the loan and Paul cannot force him to because Paul doesn't know who “John” is. Since Paul is on record as owing the money, the bank will pursue Paul in the belief that Paul is a deadbeat, and this causes Paul to have a poor credit rating so that Paul can no longer borrow money himself, or to send his kids off to college. Pretty devastating. And unfortunately, you are “guilty till proven innocent.”

It could even be the next person at your dentist’s office who hears the secretary ask you for your social (don’t give it to her so quickly) that jots it down and later assumes your identity. Or it could be an email asking you to “update” your information. Online identity thieves typically copy the webpage of a major bank or credit card company and then they spam millions of people in the hope that you bank at that organization or use that credit card online. The thief, through one of these many ways, obtains your address, birth date, and bank account numbers and other vital information.

Identity theft is possible without serious breaches of privacy, and is often due to personal or corporate negligence (not shredding confidential information, or giving out private information to unauthorized persons). Most of us just assume that “everyone” out there is honest. What we fail to remember is that “one bad apple” can make life rotton for a “bunch of us.” MoreMortgage.Com wants to help you learn how to protect yourself from ever becoming a victim of Identity Theft. We also want you to know what to do to “get out of the mess” if it ever does happen to you.

Knowledge is definitely power, and so we have decided to follow the marketing concept of KISS (keep it simple stupid) and to give you just a few amazing links to sites that will really teach you all about identity theft, fraud, and what to do if you ever have to suffer through the “character building experience” of Identity Theft. Fortunately, as they say, it is only money and not your health. But since your financial health is also very important to your well being, we now invite you to check out the following sites:

www.ftc.gov

This is the website of the United States government. It’s actually well done. On the front page you will quickly see a long black bar with red letters that say’s “Identity Theft.” This is because the problem has become a major issue in our economic society. Just click on the bar and the rest is truly easy. Hat’s off to beaurocracy (for a change!)!

Another site we highly recommend is www.idtheftcenter.org

This site is very informative and educational. It also tells you what to do to protect yourself against identity theft and what to do if you become a victim. Also, it advises you as to your rights as a victim and how to contact the services and agencies you will need to set the matter straight.

If you believe that you have become a victim of identity theft please contact the Social Security Administrations Fraud Hotline. The toll free number is: 1(800) 269-0271 and immediately report the fraudulent activity that has been perpetrated using your personal information.

Also, report the incident as quickly as possible to all three credit agencies so that they can report your report to them on your credit profile.
Experian 1(888) 397-3742
Equifax 1(800) 525-6285
Trans Union 1(800) 680-7289

Then it would be wise to file a police report in your area and save the report number and the name of the police officer or detective who took your report.

Last but not least, file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission by contacting the FTC Identity Theft Hotline at: 1(877) ID-THEFT.

It will take awhile, but these actions will allow you to regain control of your financial life.

The best advice we can give is that a little caution (don’t become paranoid!) goes a long way! Good luck!