Lost wallet - identity theft

in the line of work that i do i have so many people saying that they have been a victim of identity theft and that they have had their information either lost or stolen i had a lady tell me she left her purse in the mall and it had 7 credit cards in it close to 1000 and identification in it as well she said she had to cancel credit cards and that people were using her name to put things in her name and now she is still having her information under investigation and that she is having trouble trying to get her credit history straightened out now i felt bad for the woman cause i dont know i wouldve been so mad if that happened to me

Thousands of people encounter identity theft every year, which is very unfortunate. The sad thing is, it can usually be prevented! If a purse is stolen, that's one thing, but posting your identity on the internet without second thought can create HUGE problems. There are companies on the internet that will sell your info to other companies for their own profit. It's THAT bad. Luckily, there are other companies growing everyday to try and prevent identity theft just short of wiring a chip in everyone's head <----now there's a good idea! The best thing you can do is protect yourself: don't hand out your info to a company that isn't reknowned or credible.

Hi chmartinbaby06,

Everybody should follow a set of task when a wallet is lost or stolen –

• Inform your credit card company immediately.
  
• Contact your bank and ask to put your ATM cards on a hold.
  
• If your wallet is stolen, call the police and file your complaint.
  
• You can inform the three major credit bureaus also.

These are the basic guidelines you should follow. Hope you find it useful.

Regards,
Bryan

Excellent advice, Bryan!
My wallet was once stolen, but I suppose it's fortunate in some weird way that there was ONLY money in it. I lost $116, but not my identity :-/

i still have a very bad habit of leaving my purse in the car and run into the store or whatever else i might have to do quite sometime ago i was w/my grandmother and i walked her to her door which was in the back of the house left car running and w/ my purse in a matter of 2 min. my purse was gone i checked all over stores i went to & the bank within an hour i rec'd a call from the police dept. they found my purse around the corner from my grammas house thank god all i kept thinking was all my information they had my address, cards well long story short they just took the cash and left everything else in the purse, i'm a very trusting person and sometimes i don't stop and think of all the dishonest people we have running the streets

Hi debbra47

Welcome on the board.

It is very risky to leave your valuables in the car. If anyone sees it from outside the locked car, not only he will try to steal it but also will be damaging your car. Additional expenses will build up after loosing something valuable. So, two risky things can be avoided here.

Though, the thief might have only taken the money from your purse, but still you should be very alert in reviewing your credit report. Stealing your credit card number is also a very serious identity theft trying to open a new account in your name. Make sure that you don't have to go through all this later. If anything suspicious happens later, you will be able to detect it instantly.

Regards
Roxette

I'm so glad that I got IDT protection. I don't know what I would do without it. I can have some peace of mind knowing that I'm protected. One in four households will be victims of Identity Theft this year! It's no secret that identity theft is a major problem in America. Think you're not at risk? Unfortunately you are.

- Do you hand your credit card to servers at restaurants?
- Do you sign your credit cards?
- Do you supply personal information over the internet?
- Do you keep your Social Security number in your wallet or purse?
- Do you leave mail at your home or business for the postal carrier to collect?
- Do you shred unwanted mail with personal information?


What if you discovered that your identity had been stolen?
- Call your bank and/or credit card company
- Contact the three major credit repositories
- Go through the helpful but extensive steps recommended by the Federal Trade Commission in its 30-page consumer support publication
- Fill out and submit the affidavit form supplied by the FTC to dispute new, unauthorized accounts
- Spend on average $1,500 in out-of-pocket expenses to resolve the many problems cause by identity thieves

WITH THE IDENTITY THEFT SHIELD: Get REGULAR monitoring of your credit report and let the proven leaders in the identity restoration and legal services fields assist you.

With no obligation, you can view a short presentation and learn more by visiting my website.

Hope this helps!


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