Fraud Tip of the Day - November 2

What is Identity Theft?

Understanding the definition of Identity Theft is the first step you can take to guard yourself against it.

What is Identity Theft

Simply put, Identity Theft is a crime involving first collecting personal and financial information about you then using it to impersonate you for financial gain.

Your identity is said to be "stolen" because another party uses your identifying information in order to take out loans, apply for and receive credit cards to make purchases with, apply for bankruptcy, sully your good name in the commission of a crime, or to receive medical care.

Why Identity Theft is a Problem

Someone using your name and identity at the hospital could cause you harm or even kill you. What if the person posing as you happened to be diabetic or HIV positive? And what are you going to do when the bill arrives? Yikes! If you apply for a new credit card, car or mortgage loan you're going to find it very difficult to get credit. If a new employer or conducts a background check and discovers your credit is a mess you could lose out on a great job. You could even have trouble renting a house or apartment because they do background checks, too.

If you fall victim to Identity Theft, clearing your name is going to be a time-consuming and possibly expensive task. You might find your credit ruined and obtaining loans impossible.

It's a sad, harsh fact that repairing your credit is going to take far longer than it took to ruin it. If you or someone you know has become the victim of identity theft, visit our Identity Theft Victim Guide for information on what to do and who to contact to begin repairing your credit and good name.

More Identity Theft Information