FUCK - identity stolen

[danaeris]

My U.S. identity has been stolen.

Someone took out an American Express credit card using my info (including my social security number) and the address at Moonbase Folsom (the last place I lived in San Francisco).

They rang up about $1900 in charges, and a collection agency just called.

Good news:
The US and Canadian credit systems are totally separate. So this will not impact me unless I try to move to the U.S. again.

Bad news:
I have a LOT of paperwork to fill out.

Good news:
According to the FTC (government official) in the US I just spoke with, this will probably work out okay, and my US credit will probably be fixed, and I will NOT be held responsible for the charges. It should be particularly easy to prove in my case, given that I've been living in Canada for two years.

Wish me luck...

(yes, I edited this post to clear some things up and give more info now that I've spoken with the FTC)

Comments

[mactavish.livejournal.com]

Is this helpful?
http://datcp.state.wi.us/cp/consumerinfo/cp/factsheets/stolen_indentity.jsp
http://idtheft.about.com/od/youridentityisstolen/a/Identity_Theft.htm

[vyedma.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure I understand what happened here. But first I would cancel your credit cards and explain to them what has happened. If you can prove that it wasn't you, they may reverse the charges. Compair the signature on the credit card reciet to your own signature.

[johngnassi.livejournal.com]

Yes, you won't have to pay any of this. When you are done filling out affidavits for American Express and any law enforcement people that want them, you will need to go through your 3 US credit reports (different companies) - call them and tell them, one by one, taking notes on everone you talk with and when, what happened and ask for a free copy of your credit report to review and submit corrections for.

[polywolf.livejournal.com]

Could this have been someone you lived with or someone who had access to this information?

Do they have any idea where the purchases were made and when they were made?

hugs

[yaksman.livejournal.com]

Sorry, Do I know you?


[evil grin]
Identity or no, you remain a charming cabbit.
Glad to hear this won't kick you in the bank account, hope you can figure out where they got your info.

[tshuma]

I agree with jongnassi...you won't have to pay any of this. You may continue to get calls from collections agencies in the meantime, but it will get cleared up. They will most likely request a notarized affidavit from you saying that it wasn't you, plus you might want to get hold of the three reporting agencies in the US and place a statement with them that your identity has been stolen, etc. You can also arrange with them that you do not desire to receive unsolicited credit card offers.

Pulling your credit reports with the three agencies to see if there's been any other activity is also useful -- you should be able to get them for free under these circumstances.

My guess is that some agency still had your old address, sent an offer via mail to that address, and someone near there found it in the trash.

Yep, I've been there, and it took me four years to clear my credit completely, but they did a lot of damage in that time. With luck you've caught it early enough that it will just be a hassle for a few months. In the meantime,*hugs*, it's still an annoying hassle.

more than just the big three

[http://users.livejournal.com/_duncan/]

There are still some places that won't take my checks after a similar incident in 2004.

[metawade.livejournal.com]

Craziness! My sympathies Danae! Identify theft is actually my most significant concern wrt not friends-locking my LJ (easy to find lots of personal info). Has there been any assessment of how the individual was able to acquire your info?