Vets: Be proactive to prevent ID theft The Debt Adviser by Steve Bucci • Bankrate.com

This is one of a series of articles that details actions the Department of Veterans Affairs needs to take at once to help safeguard the financial and personal identities of the veterans and active duty service personnel for whom they are responsible. Millions of them were put at risk by the recent theft of data in the VA's charge.

The VA should stop discounting the problem. Explain in detail the dangers of identity theft beyond simple credit issues. Outline all the steps of action a concerned veteran should take.

Identity theft is serious. No one likes to call attention to something negative that may result from their actions, but to say that there is no evidence of a crime -- yet -- may offer a false sense of security at a time when increased vigilance is appropriate.

The Federal Trade Commission has said that "People whose identities have been stolen can spend months or years and thousands of dollars cleaning up the mess the thieves have made of a good name and credit record. In the meantime, victims of identity theft may lose job opportunities, be refused loans for education, housing, or cars, and even get arrested for crimes they didn't commit. Humiliation, anger, and frustration are among the feelings victims experience as they navigate the process of rescuing their identity."

Yes, thieves can use your name and Social Security number for purposes other than opening new credit accounts in your name or pirating existing accounts. In these cases you get stuck with the bill, the collectors and the credit report damage. That would seem to be enough to worry about, but the truth is that there are other problems thieves can cause that are much more difficult to correct than credit issues and can cause problems for the identity theft victim for many years.

A thief can use your information to:

• Gain employment, which means your Social Security number is associated with additional earnings and IRS taxes due. Try to tell the IRS auditor that the W-2 form they have isn't yours. • Access medical services in your name so that the bill is in your name and so is the thief's medical information. Mingled medical records could adversely affect your own medical treatment. • Commit crimes and have warrants issued in your name, resulting in possible arrest and incarceration. You may be stopped for a defective tail light and end up in a cell due to fraudulent outstanding warrants issued in your name.

Steps to take immediately
The VA should tell veteran victims in no uncertain terms that it is strongly advised that they should not wait for evidence of an identity theft before taking action.

Immediate actions to take:

• Check with local authorities to see if you qualify for an "Identity Theft Passport." Several states currently offer them. • Place a fraud alert or credit freeze on your credit report immediately. This will help prevent any new credit accounts from being issued in your name without your permission. Active duty military can place an Active Duty Alert on their credit files that will accomplish the same goal. • Contact your creditors and banks and ask them to flag accounts, so that any activity such as an address change request is cleared with you ahead of time. • The fastest way to know if any fraudulent accounts have been opened is to review your credit report where most accounts with your name and Social Security number will be recorded. Make sure that all accounts listed are yours. In particular, review any newly opened accounts carefully. With access to your name and your Social Security number, thieves have the ability to open new accounts in your name and provide a new address for billing. • Watch your mail. Look for change of address notices, and be aware if some items fail to show up when they usually do. Thieves might have used your information to put in a change of address, and have your billing statements and other mail forwarded elsewhere. • Answer the phone. Creditors might be checking on suspicious charges or inquiring about new accounts. • Review all creditor and bank statements for accuracy. • Change passwords on existing brokerage accounts or other investment accounts. • Review your Social Security Administration statements for unusual or unfamiliar activity.

P.S.: I received an inquiry from a WWII and Korean War vet asking if I knew how far back the stolen records go. Good question. VA, can you include that in your next press release?

The Debt Adviser, Steve Bucci, is the president of Money Management International Financial Education Foundation and the author of Credit Repair Kit for Dummies. Visit MMI for additional debt advice or to ask a question of the Debt Adviser go to the "Ask the Experts" page and select "debt" as the topic.