 If you believe that you are a victim of identity theft, we urge you to take the following steps as soon as possible:
- File a “Fraud Alert” with the three national credit bureaus. The company that you choose to file a fraud alert with is required to contact the other two, which will then place a fraud alert on their credit reports as well.
- TransUnion 1-800-680-7289, www.transunion.com; Fraud Victim assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92834-6790
- Experian 1-888-397-3742, www.experian.com; P.O. Box 9532, Allen, TX 75013
- Equifax 1-800-525-6285, www.equifax.com; P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
- File an identity theft report with your local law enforcement agency.
- Close any accounts that have been tampered with or opened fraudulently. It is imperative that you contact the company involved to dispute the fraudulent transactions or accounts. You should follow up with the company in writing. It is recommended that you send all correspondence by certified mail. Ask the company whether a fraud affidavit is required. If a fraud affidavit is required, the company may send you its specific affidavit or you can get an I.D. Theft affidavit from the publication Take Charge: Fighting Back Against Identity Theft. These materials are available at the Federal Trade Commission’s national identity theft resource Web page at www.consumer.gov/idtheft.
- File an Identity Theft complaint with the Federal Trade Commission at www.consumer.gov/idtheft, or 1-877-IDTHEFT (438-4338).
- Consider placing a Security Freeze on your credit report. As of January 1, 2008, any victim of identity theft has the option of freezing his or her credit report which will restrict access to that credit report and help prevent additional instances of identity theft. (For more information click here, takes you to the Security Freeze page)
- Consider requesting an Identity Theft Passport provided by the Attorney General’s Office. An application for the Identity Theft Passport is available at www.ArkansasAG.gov/identity_theft
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