Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine; do both sides of each
license, credit card, etc. You will know what you had in your wallet and all of
the account numbers and phone numbers to call and cancel. Keep the photocopy in
a safe place. A corporate attorney sent this out to the employees in his
company. I pass it along, for your information. We've all heard horror stories
about fraud that's committed us in your name, address, SS#, credit, etc.
Unfortunately I (the author of this piece who
happens to be an attorney) have firsthand knowledge, because my wallet was
stolen last month and within a week the thieve(s) ordered an expensive monthly
cell phone package, applied for a VISA credit card, had a credit line approved
to buy a Gateway computer, received a PIN number from DMV to change my driving
record information online, and more.
But here's some critical information to limit the damage in case this happens to
you or someone you know. As everyone always advises, cancel your credit cards
immediately, but the key is having the toll free numbers and your card numbers
handy so you know whom to call. Keep those where you can find them easily. File
a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where it was stolen, this proves
to credit providers you were diligent, and is a first step toward an
investigation (if there ever is one).
But here's what is perhaps most important: (I never ever thought to do this)
Call the three national credit reporting organizations immediately to place a
fraud alert on your name and SS#. I had never heard of doing that until advised
by a bank that called to tell me an application for credit was made
over the Internet in my name. The alert means any company that checks your
credit knows your information was stolen and they have to contact you by phone
to authorize new credit. By the time I was advised to do this, almost 2 weeks
after the theft, all the damage had been done.
There are records of all the credit checks initiated by the thieves' purchases,
none of which I knew about before placing the alert. Since then, no additional
damage has been done, and the thieves threw my wallet away this weekend (someone
turned it in). It seems to have stopped them in their tracks.
The numbers are:
Equifax: 1-800-525-6285
Experian (formerly TRW): 1-888-397-3742
Trans Union: 1-800-680-7289
Social Security Administration (fraud line): 1-800-269-0271
We pass along jokes; we pass along just about everything. Do think about passing
this information
along. It could really help someone