If you feel that you may be a victim of identity theft, then you may be facing a situation that you just do not know what to do in. The fact is, though, that this type of threat can happen to anyone at virtually anytime. You do not need to do anything wrong, per se, to have something go wrong for you. When you think that someone has violated your personal information, you should take action immediately to begin fixing the damage that they may have caused you.

Where To Start

First, determine what has been violated. If you are missing your credit card, driver’s license or any other type of financial or identification item, you should call and have them canceled right away. This way, they are locked out the system and can not be used. You should also talk to your credit card lender to find out if anyone has put any charges on your credit card that may not have been yours. You should work with them to find out how you need to go about getting your identity theft protection on your credit cards into gear so that you are not responsible for those charges any longer.

Next, check your credit report. Your credit report is a very important piece of paper (actually most will get theirs on the web these days.) In any case, you need to insure that the information that is being reported there about you is actually accurate. This way, you will know that the identity is still safe and has not been stolen. If you find errors on your credit report, especially those that have to do with an account that you possibly did not open. If you find these things listed on your credit report, you may be a victim of identity theft. Also, make sure to look that there are no wrong addresses listed for you either. You should insure this because others at that address may be using your information to secure their own lines of credit.

If you find errors on your credit report, there are several things that you need to do. First, you need to call the lenders that are listed (the credit agency will provide you with their numbers) and find out what the account in question is and inform them that you did not open it. Then, you will need to work with them to determine what the right information is. From here, you will need to talk to your credit agencies and have them clear up any discrepancies that are listed there. You may need to work with an attorney to help you to get through all of the paperwork.

Always take care when it comes to your identity theft protection so that you know that the best opportunities are available to you.

Avoiding Identity Theft

To be a smart consumer, identity theft protection is something that should always be top of your mind. You should know what you should do and what you should not do in order to insure that you do not become a victim. There are several things that you should do, or rather things that you should not do to make sure that this does not happen to you. The statistics show that many people will have some form of mistake on their credit report that has to do with identity theft.

Here are some things that you should know about now. These are your do not do’s.

Never provide your social security number to anyone. You should always safely guard this information. In some states, you do not have to have it on your driver’s license either. When you are careful about using your social security number, those that may be able to apply for and get credit in your name will have that much of a more difficult time doing so.

Don’t wait if it’s lost. If you lose your credit card, do not wait to cancel it. If you can’t find it, then take the time to look for it now. If you can not find it, call the credit card company immediately and have them cancel and reissue it. Most credit card use on your credit card will be done within the first 24 hours of the thief having it in their possession.

Don’t give out your address, bank account information or your last name. In some cases, this may be enough to get moving on a loan. Those that know that you have a good credit history may target you for this type of information. This information should not be given out on the web either.

Don’t forget about spyware and online protection. You should always have your online spyware running. This can help you to keep those that are using spyware as an identity theft tool to not attack you. Also, make sure you only provide your credit information on the web through merchants you know and those that offer a secure website.

Don’t go with the wrong credit card company. Most will offer identity theft protection in case someone does get a hold of your information. Choose your credit card company only after considering what they offer in identity theft protection.

These things are all things that you should do, all the time, to insure that you do not become a victim here.