Identity theft help!!

[Anonymous]

Hi all! Hoping someone can give me some advice and steer my in the right direction. My husband and I just recently discovered we have been victims of identity theft (yes, I know we should have taken an active part in our credit monitoring and we would have know, but unfortunately we did not). Anyway, when we learned of the accounts that were opened in our name, we took all the steps to notify the credit bureaus, the credit cards, the banks at which two account were opened, and the cell phone company where an account was opened. We provided letters, police reports, FTC identity theft affidavits, proof of our identity, etc. 3 of the credit cards are refusing to do anything, saying it isn’t identity theft because the name and address on file match my husbands. Well no kidding, they used his information. After my initial dispute with these companies got me no where, I filed a complaint with the CFPB, which also got me no where. We are in a terrible time crunch to have these removed from our credit as we are relocating out of state for my husbands job and until these accounts are cleared up- we can not proceed with the mortgage process. Can anyone tell me if there are any other options we have? Can these companies really just hold is responsible and call it a day?

Thanks so much!

[gdale6]

Have you sent request to the CRAs to have them removed under the laws afforded you under the FCRA? Sounds like you have sent this to the banks they are not going to help you. If time is of the essence you may need to engage a lawyer to have all this taken care of. Welcome to the board.

[RobertEG]

The CRA is required to block the information from any subsequent credit reports they issue provided you have complied with the requirements set forth under FCRA 605B.

Did you, in contacting the CRA, specifically request a block under FCRA 605B?

In a nutshell, if you identified the accounts/transactions that are asserted as being based on use of your identity, such as by including a standard FTC identity theft affidavit, included proof of your identity, and a copy of a police report, then the CRA must block.

If they decline to block, they must identify one of the permissible reasons set forth under FCRA 605B (c):

FCRA 605B (c)    Authority to Decline or Rescind

• In general. A consumer reporting agency may decline to block, or may rescind any block, of information relating to a consumer under this section, if the consumer reporting agency reasonably determines that –
  • the information was blocked in error or a block was requested by the consumer in error;
  • the information was blocked, or a block was requested by the consumer, on the basis of a material misrepresentation of fact by the consumer relevant to the request to block; or
  • the consumer obtained possession of goods, services, or money as a result of the blocked transaction or transactions.
• Notification to consumer. If a block of information is declined or rescinded under this subsection, the affected consumer shall be notified promptly, in the same manner as consumers are notified of the reinsertion of information under section 611(a)(5)(B).
• Significance of block. For purposes of this subsection, if a consumer reporting agency rescinds a block, the presence of information in the file of a consumer prior to the blocking of such information is not evidence of whether the consumer knew or should have known that the consumer obtained possession of any goods, services, or money as a result of the block.

[Anonymous]

Thank you both for your replies. I’ve disputed the accounts with the CRA’s using their dispute process, either via their online source or by phone. When doing the dispute via an online portal I uploaded my documents to support my claims, and when disputing over the phone I faxed them to the number they provided.

Should I also send a hard copy?

[Anonymous]

Okay- so I faxed and sent certified letters to all 3 bureaus specifically requesting the fraudulent information be blocked under FCRA 605. I included police report, FTC affidavit, letter, my ID.

I have heard back from all 3 that they are opening disputes with the creditors. This is not what I asked to be done.. So now what??

Please help!!

[MyDataMyChoice]

Send a HARD Copy

SNAIL Mail always works best

[RobertEG]

Send them a clarifying letter stating that your prior communication was a request to block the reported information under the provisions of FCRA 605B, and was NOT a dispute under the provisions of FCRA 611.

[Anonymous]

So when this happened to me, I followed these steps and within 4 days  all 3 bureaus had blocked everything and sent notices to the creditors. First you need to send the bureaus your police report, FTC affidavit, Copy of ID, and copy of recent utility bill. The FTC sends them a copy of your report from their system, so when they receive yours, they can compare the two and automatically validate the legitimacy of it. (This was told to me by a TransUnion rep, unsure of the accuracy). I found that the hardest part is getting the bureaus to actually scan in your reports into your profile. Snail mail a copy to the 3 bureaus (you already did, so first hurdle complete) In addition, I have found experian is pretty reliable about processing documents sent using their document uploader. (The trick to getting them to process: scan them to PDF, then print them to PDF but change the settings to print in grayscale. For whatever reason, Experian has issues uploading color PDFs in my experience) upload them here https://www.experian.com/consumer/upload/    

Next, TransUnion and Equifax... Fax is the best for these guys. TransUnion is good about processing docs, Equifax is another story. And in my experience Equifax is the hardest to deal with. They have literally told me several times that they have their own internal procedures in dealing with ID Theft accounts and they don’t follow federal “guidelines” (According to their overseas CS the FCRA is a “guide” and they don’t go by it), don’t worry, I have a work around for Equifax as well. Sorry back on track... TransUnion, fax your docs to 610-546-4771- ATTN Fraud Victim Assistance Department. 

Equifax- This is the best way I have found to get them to actually find your documents- mail them, and then fax them twice a day for 2 days. I know it sounds rediculous but, its the only way I have actually managed to get them docs. Their fax number is 888-826-0597 Attention Fraud Department.

Next, wait 2 days for them to post your docs to your profile. Then Call them.

Experian- Call 877-284-7942. Enter your SSN when robo lady asks. Then when she starts in the menu options, just press 0. She will say sorry I didn’t get that; then start reading the menu again, just do this three times and it will connect you to a live U.S. Based rep within seconds. Ask the rep to send you to a senior fraud specialist. If they ask why, just insist they transfer the call. If they are being stubborn and wont transfer until you explain, either hang up and try again, or if they do transfer, MAKE SURE they don’t send you to the dispute department. This is going to sound terrible, but when they transfer the call, if someone overseas answers, they send you to the wrong department. Hang up and try again. The department that can help you is US based. When you get connected with the right department, inform them that you are needing to have information blocked from your file that is fraud. Inform them that you have reports on file and you would like them to use those to satisfy the requirements for blockage under 605b. Again, if they say they are doing a 30 day dispute on these, kindly remind them of 605b, and you would like to have them blocked. Every time I’ve called this department, they have full authorization to access and control the file. Just tell them what needs to be corrected, and to use the report on file, and your file will update overnight.

TransUnion- Call the general CS number- 800-916-8800. Press 4 to speak to rep. Press 2 for no file number. When the rep answers- ask to be transferred to the “United States Special Handling Department”. These are the stateside reps who have the ability to make instant changes to your file, and the department to get ahold of if your file gets split (NO FUN). Explain to them the same thing you did for Experian. They will pull your docs and use those to block instantly.

And now Equifax.... I use this method to get anything done with them and has worked for me about 80 percent of the time. For Equifax refusing to block, and telling me they don’t have to follow the 5 day rule, I contact their corporate office in Atlanta- 404-885-8000. A rep should pick up instantly. Express to them that you are needing to speak to someone who can help you with an issue not being resolved with regular CS. Tell them that the main line reps are not abiding by the federal laws, and you need someone in upper management to assist you. Sometimes, they transfer you to a US based team that will basically bend over backwards for you.. super nice people- sorry I don’t have the team/department’s official name- and then sometimes they will transfer you to the general customer service prompts.. if they do, hang up, wait a few then call back and explain to them that you have already tried speaking to regular CS and you need help from someone higher than regular CS. They should at this point connect you to the department mentioned above. If you have your docs on file, Equifax will also correct the file, and within 24 hours it should be all removed. If this fails to work, then as a last resort- TransUnion and Experian will both notify Equifax of the fraud accounts automatically. Equifax will not remove them just based on this, but if it is on file as being disputed from the other bureaus, but it will be easier to get them to remove them if that alert is on there.

Sorry for the small novel- hope it helps

[Anonymous]

Oh my goodness- thank you SO SO SO much for this detailed response. I am going to follow these exact steps, hoping I can achieve the same results!

[Anonymous]

I hoped everythng worked for you. I find it ironic that Equifax would be such a pain to work with. I'm dealing with identify theft BECAUSE of the Equifax breach and they lied when they said they informed people. I have been violated in the worst way. The IRS doesnt believe I am ME anymore. It's gotten out of hand and Equifax doesn't want to do crap about it. I had perfect credit. I was about to sign a contract on my first mortgage loan and the bottom of my world fell out. My score dropped 85 points in one night. Fraud hit my account and reported it before telling me. Despite my history. I had 70+ inquires on my report. My son has no credit and his social security number has been stolen from my records. They've been in my email and my PayPal account, my personal bank account. The most dispicable things imaginable and I am permanently disabled. I had severe brain trauma four years ago. I contacted the Florida Attorney General. They contacted Equifax the very next day. I don't know how long it was but I noticed Equifax was following me on Twitter but I never received the notification. CREEPY!! They could have told me about the breach a year ago and I could have gotten in front of this but they hung me out like a piece of meat. They don't want to help me or have any part of MY problem. I feel like this is so much bigger than me. I don't know how to fix it.