About a week ago I received a letter in the mail from Experian about a fraud alert that I requested to be put on my file. I never requested that, but didn't think much of it. Then a couple days ago I got an alert from Discover about my info being found on a suspicious website. I called but they said they had no details other than that. I assume they initiated the fraud alert for me. Now I just got another alert from Capital One saying my SSN, name and address is exposed on the dark web. When I opened the alert it had my maiden name and main address from before I was married. What do I need to do? I've worked to hard to build my credit back up for some scammer to potentially ruin it. Thanks in advance for any advice.
First, you should contact Equifax (EQ) 1-888-766-0008, TransUnion (TU) 1-800-680-7289, or Experian (EX) 1-888-397-3742 to place a fraud alert on your credit report The credit bureau you place a fraud alert with will contact the other two. Renew the fraud alert every 90 days (it's free to do so) until you're satisfied the matter has been settled; it could take years.
Next, put a security/credit freeze on each of your credit bureau files.EQ Freeze or call 1-800-685-1111 (NY residents 1-800-349-9960), TU Freeze or call 1-888-397-3742, EX Freeze or call 1-888-909-8872.
Contact each of the three credit bureaus and report that your SSN has been stolen. They'll give you free copies of your current credit reports. Review those reports for unfamiliar accounts and unknown inquiries from companies.
Report the theft of the Social Security number to the IRS or you can call 1-800-908-4490. This will prevent tax-fraud thieves from filing tax returns in your name and collecting your tax refund.
Report the identity theft to the Federal Trade Commission or you can call 1-877-IDTHEFT.
File an identity theft report with your local police. The police report will help clear your records and your name and is necessary if you want to apply for a new Social Security number.
Keep track of, record, report and close all fraudulent accounts by contacting both the companies holding the accounts and the credit-reporting agencies. This will keep your credit as clean as possible.
Report the theft of your Social Security number to the Internet Crime Complaint Center. The report will be distributed to the relevant federal, state and local authorities.
The Federal Trade Commission offers a good resource on what to do in case of identity theft.
Contact the Social Security Administration only to get a replacement card or replacement number. The only way to get a new SSN from the government is to prove without a doubt that someone has used the old number, and records of fraudulent accounts can provide that evidence.
Thank you so much for the helpful response! I will begin all of that promptly.
I'm not sure. They were very slim on details unfortunately.
Wow, thanks. It's crazy that companies are allowed to keep such a huge amount of personal information on everyone like that.