Harmful Hacker Can Steal Your Name
http://myvesta.org/articles/articles/128/1/Harmful--Hacker-Can-Steal-Your-Name/Page1.html
Myvesta US
Recent news articles of interest from Myvesta US By Myvesta US
Published on 01/28/2008
Your identity is such a valuable commodity and something you need it in your daily life to be able to financially function. So how can a person's identity be stolen and credit ruined? It's actually pretty easy to do.
Identity theft is the general term used to describe the fraudulent use of your identity - in other words someone uses your name, social security number, credit card number or some other personal information for his or her use so that they can commit theft or fraud. While the name 'identity thief' is relatively new the practice of stealing money or getting other benefits by pretending to be a different person is thousands of years old.
It has become so common now and can strike anyone. Using someone else's identity to obtain goods and services, posing as someone else when arrested for a crime, using someone else's information to take on their identity or using the name of a business to obtain credit.
While you probably can't prevent identity theft you can minimize the risk by managing your personal information and being aware of the problem.
One really good example of 'identity theft' which is dependent upon credit, is bank fraud. It occurs when a criminal obtains a loan from a lender by assuming another identity. He pretends to be the victim by presenting information that the lender requires in order to verify identity. This could be name, address or date of birth.
Even if the lender checks this all out against data held at a national credit rating service he will not encounter any problems or concerns as all of the information will match the victims. It is not easy for the lender to discover that identity fraud is taking place. The criminal keeps the money from the loan, the lender is never repaid and the victim is wrongly blamed for defaulting on a loan which he never knew about. Their credit status is damaged and therefore they are refused credit when applying for a loan to make a major purchase. This is the most common ways that consumers find out they are victims of identity theft.
If an identity thief is opening new credit accounts in your name, these accounts are likely to show up on your credit report. This is the best way to catch mistakes and fraud before your personal finance are ruined.
The information which makes up your credit report is gathered from many sources, such as your creditors, public record sources and collection agencies. Your credit report is a picture of how you, and you alone, have paid back debt and met other financial obligations as of the date you purchase your report. Because your credit file changes constantly, it's important that you review your information regularly to check its accuracy.
In the UK You have the right to request a Statutory Credit Report from any of the three credit reference agencies (Callcredit, Experian and Equifax) who, under the Data Protection Act, are permitted by law to charge you £2 for each request you make. They will also ask you for your name, date of birth, full current and previous address. This will be posted to you within 7 working days of receipt of request. If you want to dispute information on a credit report received from any of the above, (after having tried to sort the problem out with the lender or other source of information, if appropriate), you can write to the credit reference agency.
In the US The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA) which was passed in 2003 is a federal law which allows consumers to request and obtain a free credit report once every twelve months from each of the three nationwide consumer credit reporting companies (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion). However, the free reports are a bit unwieldily to try to compare side by side and keep organized.
More Identity Theft Resources
Identity theft affects more than 100,000 people every year. By finding out a few of your personal details criminals can devastate your life.
I Was A Victim Of Identity Theft - Someone Stole My Name
Your identity is such a valuable commodity and something you need it in your daily life to be able to financially function. So how can a person's identity be stolen and credit ruined? It's actually pretty easy to do.Identity theft is the general term used to describe the fraudulent use of your identity - in other words someone uses your name, social security number, credit card number or some other personal information for his or her use so that they can commit theft or fraud. While the name 'identity thief' is relatively new the practice of stealing money or getting other benefits by pretending to be a different person is thousands of years old.
It has become so common now and can strike anyone. Using someone else's identity to obtain goods and services, posing as someone else when arrested for a crime, using someone else's information to take on their identity or using the name of a business to obtain credit.
While you probably can't prevent identity theft you can minimize the risk by managing your personal information and being aware of the problem.
One really good example of 'identity theft' which is dependent upon credit, is bank fraud. It occurs when a criminal obtains a loan from a lender by assuming another identity. He pretends to be the victim by presenting information that the lender requires in order to verify identity. This could be name, address or date of birth.
Even if the lender checks this all out against data held at a national credit rating service he will not encounter any problems or concerns as all of the information will match the victims. It is not easy for the lender to discover that identity fraud is taking place. The criminal keeps the money from the loan, the lender is never repaid and the victim is wrongly blamed for defaulting on a loan which he never knew about. Their credit status is damaged and therefore they are refused credit when applying for a loan to make a major purchase. This is the most common ways that consumers find out they are victims of identity theft.
If an identity thief is opening new credit accounts in your name, these accounts are likely to show up on your credit report. This is the best way to catch mistakes and fraud before your personal finance are ruined.
The information which makes up your credit report is gathered from many sources, such as your creditors, public record sources and collection agencies. Your credit report is a picture of how you, and you alone, have paid back debt and met other financial obligations as of the date you purchase your report. Because your credit file changes constantly, it's important that you review your information regularly to check its accuracy.
In the UK You have the right to request a Statutory Credit Report from any of the three credit reference agencies (Callcredit, Experian and Equifax) who, under the Data Protection Act, are permitted by law to charge you £2 for each request you make. They will also ask you for your name, date of birth, full current and previous address. This will be posted to you within 7 working days of receipt of request. If you want to dispute information on a credit report received from any of the above, (after having tried to sort the problem out with the lender or other source of information, if appropriate), you can write to the credit reference agency.
In the US The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA) which was passed in 2003 is a federal law which allows consumers to request and obtain a free credit report once every twelve months from each of the three nationwide consumer credit reporting companies (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion). However, the free reports are a bit unwieldily to try to compare side by side and keep organized.
Steve says...You should check your credit report really carefully. Otherwise lenders, employers and tenants may make decisions about you based on incorrect information.
- "Your Evil Twin: Behind the Identity Theft Epidemic" (Bob Sullivan)
- "The Wall Street Journal. Complete Identity Theft Guidebook: How to Protect Yourself from the Most Pervasive Crime in America (Wall Street Journal Identity Theft Guidebook: How to Protect)" (Terri Cullen)
- "Stealing Your Life: The Ultimate Identity Theft Prevention Plan" (Frank W. Abagnale)