Identity theft again!!

[KFld]

I don't know how many of you remember how last year someone in a town an hour away from us opened up a phone line if difficult child's name. Well they've done it again with two different accounts.

Last year we filed a police report and sent all the information needed to the credit bureau to prove he never lived there and it was erased off his report. I kept him signed up with experian and they alert us anytime there is a change to his credit report. Well this past month he had 2 negatives things show up on his report. One for a credit card he doesn't have that was charged $100 over the limit, and the other was a light and power bill sent to collections for $550.00. He called both places they guess what??? They are both to the same address as last year.

As soon as he disputed these items with experian they looked at the report from last year and cleared them right off his credit report. I spoke to a detective from the fraud division in the town they keep opening up these accounts in and he wants us to send him a typed sworn statement of the events since last year and he said if we can get an apartment number, which we have, he will take the case.

I'm so glad I kept him signed up with experian. Isn't it amazing though, that he can't even get a credit card in his name, but someone else can.

 

[Big Bad Kitty]

I can't believe the unbelievable audacity of these people who not once but TWICE are getting credit in your son's name. I mean, why aren't they in jail?

 

[hearts and roses]

That is some scary stuff, karen. I'm so glad you have someone working with you on the case. That person should be behind bars!

 

[KFld]

I just feel really bad for difficult child that he has to go through this. He gets completeley stressed by it because he has come so far and is so concerned about his credit being ruined. He pays all his bills on time, which for him is amazing, and someone else is ruining it for him. Hopefully this will be resolved and it won't happen again. I'm going home tonight to gather all the information we have back to last year when it happened and start typing the letter. I'm much better at it then he is, as far as explaining the entire thing, dates etc. plus I type much faster :smile:

 

[DDD]

Good Grief, Karen! DDD

 

[Lothlorien]

At least you can get it off of his credit! I've heard of so many times when people can't get that stuff off and it's years of grief. Hopefully the police can get these idiots!

 

[Hound dog]

Karen

It's odd that this person is able to get credit in difficult child's name, yet difficult child can't even get credit.

I'm wondering just how far this identity theft has been taken. I mean for credit cards you have to list a job source ect.

difficult child needs a paper shredder for xmas. Then drill it into his head to shred anything that has his personal info on it.

I'm sorry he's going thru this again. Good thing you thought ahead. Glad the police will take the case. Hopefully this person will find themselves in a cold jail cell by xmas.

Hugs

 

[Star*]

Get life line - Rush Limbaugh endorses it and it's got a guarantee.

x had ruined my credit & Taxes (another day another story)

and then when I took charge of MY life - he used difficult child's social and tried to ruin that.

In both instances the state dropped charges against him citing I was an X wife and the other was his son - another flock of baboons.

So sorry for this - The red flag that I have with the big 3 credit reporting agencies - worthless.

Star

 

[TerryJ2]

I've never heard of that company but I will keep it in mind. Sounds good!
You're right --how DOES someone else do that but you can't get credit in his name?
Good luck and sorry you have to go through this. It's great that you're on top of things.

 

[KFld]

It has nothing to do with shredding papers. I believe when he lost his car to a drug dealer 2 years ago he probably left a job application in the glove compartment with-his social security number on it or something and this person has held onto it and uses it periodically.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

Wow, can't catch a break, can he? Glad you and he are on it. It is such a pain to get get your credit cleared -- you are presumed guilty until proven innocent and even if you do prove it they are lax about correcting it.

 

[Abbey]

Not to make light of the problem, but sometimes I WISH someone would steal my identity. They wouldn't get diddly squat. :smile:

Oddly enough, we were broken into about a month ago. What did they take? They took our 'gambling box' (a box that contains all our casino cards that are worth nothing...go ahead, rack up points, and my $5 nock-off pair of sunglasses).

After being robbed two years ago, we NEVER leave the clicker in the car anymore. That was a god send this second time.

Hope your son gets it all worked out.

Abbey

 

[donna723]

I hope they catch up with the ones doing this. Don't be surprised if your sons' SSN turns out to be just one of many that they're using! It could be a lot more than just a few utility bills. There may be a whole group of people whose ID is being used by these folks. They even sell SSN's to other people - supposedly there's whole websites devoted to this!

I went through this a few years ago with my son, and only partially got it straightened out. Turned out to be <u>HIS DAD</u> who had been using his SSN! Nice, huh! What a guy! They have the same first initial so I guess that's how he did it. My sons' credit report had some of his info, some of his fathers, even unpaid hospital bills for hospitals in towns he's never been in and a title loan on his dads' old junker car that was never paid off! In fact, in one credit bureau, if you put in my sons' SSN, HIS FATHERS' name comes up! Social Security says there's no way it could happen by accident - he had to have given his own sons' SSN!

 

[Star*]

Karen -

It's Life Lock.....laughing to myself. Life line is the panic button necklace worn by the elderly.

Also check with the SS office - there may be a way to get a new social security number. Always worth a call.

 

[KFld]

I think I will look into seeing if he could change his ss#. I'm sure it's probably a complicated process, but well worth it for this to never happen again.

 

[Lothlorien]

You cannot change your ss number. This has been a subject of much controversy, regarding identity theft.

 

[Scent of Cedar II]

That's really scary.

Barbara

 

[Star*]

Okay - thinking back

In order to get your ss# changed - I think you had to be a battered woman considering going into hiding. Because that's when it was offered to me by the SSA.

Sorry for the misnomer. Star