Bankrate reporter caught in data breach |
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To protect myself from being a victim of new-account fraud, a particularly troublesome form of identity theft, I first decided to place fraud alerts at the three major credit-reporting agencies, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. It amounted to a quick five-minute process of going to Equifax online and submitting my information. The other two agencies will automatically get notified of the fraud alert; I do not have to contact them.
Foley recommends doing this as a first step for those affected students and alumni aged 18 or older who have a credit history. She advocates that they contact each agency individually and renew the alerts every 90 days for one year. Criminals don't always commit identity theft right away.
In the end I opted for a credit freeze. It provides better protection than a fraud alert but admittedly is more extreme. It is probably too much hassle for people unless they understand how they work and don't apply for credit often. When a freeze is in place, every time you needed a credit check, the freeze would have to be lifted temporarily or removed, which could take a few days unless you have the ability to "unlock" your report instantly as a service provided by credit monitoring.
So, now I can't just run out and get a retail credit card to get a 10 percent discount, for instance -- something that doesn't depress me too much because it depresses your credit score. Freezes prevent the credit bureaus from releasing credit reports to any entity without a permissible purpose. They essentially prevent credit checks, which would deter criminals from obtaining credit in a victim's name.
But as Foley tells me, it's a lifestyle choice that may interfere with the instant-credit-loving ways of young college grads.
Initial fraud alerts, on the other hand, last for 90 days, and are notations added to a person's credit report informing the person checking it that additional steps should be taken to ensure the application is not fraudulent. Among other differences, it does not prevent the creditor from seeing the victim's credit report.
Operation freeze
Another con for freezes is that they're not easy to place. Unlike
fraud alerts, the credit bureaus don't notify each other of the
freeze, so you have to contact each one. In writing. Via snail mail.
Experian allows you to place one online in certain
states, but Equifax and TransUnion require you to send your
request by certified mail.
To place my freeze for free, I had to provide proof that I was a victim of ID theft -- in the form of a police report.
The letter from UF provided a police report number but no copy of the police report, which is needed to place a credit freeze for free. When I called the privacy hot line, the woman I spoke with acted surprised that I needed a copy of the police report. I tried explaining that it was needed for a freeze, but it was plain that my explanation went right over her head.
In the end she gave me the telephone number for the UF police department. Once I was transferred to the records department, I again had to explain the need for a copy of the police report. A few minutes later, I had the faxed copy in hand and I was ready to start mailing off my request.
Musings
In many ways, I consider myself a lucky breach victim. I found out about the breach even though my alma mater had no way to contact me; I report on identity theft issues and knew what to do about the breach; I had Internet access all day and a job well-suited to taking time to assure that I won't be an identity theft victim because of the data breach. As a result, it took less than a single day to take all the right steps to protect my credit against identity theft. But who can say the same?
Bottom line, if you're a data breach victim, don't panic. It doesn't necessarily mean you're an identity theft victim. Contact the breached entity to see what kind of information was exposed. If that includes your Social Security number, consider taking some steps to protect yourself from identity theft. If you're an ID theft victim, read the Bankrate feature "12-step program for ID theft victims."
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