ID THEFT STORIES IN THE NEWS
Over 10 million consumers a year become victims of identity theft. Victims often do not discover the identity theft until they are denied credit, have to pay higher interest rates or receive collection calls. Identity theft victims may also discover identity theft when they get turned down for a job because of fraudulent information in a background report.
What can consumers do to protect their credit reports and their reputation? Federal law provides identity theft victims with rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) 15 U.S.C. §§1681, et seq. Under the FCRA, identity theft victims have the right to request two (2) free credit reports every 12 months. Also, identity theft victims can place a fraud alert (90 day and extended 7 year) on their credit file. Identity theft victims can dispute credit report errors due to fraud, such as accounts, name variations, public records and addresses. The credit reporting agencies must block fraudulent information from appearing in a credit file after receipt of an identity theft report within 4 business days! Download the free identity theft affidavit HERE.
Here are some of the identity theft stories we are following in Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas and across the nation:
Florida
Tampa, FL – Haagen-Dazs customers at Tampa’s International Plaza may be ID theft victims WTSP 10 News Tampa, FL — Hundreds of people who thought they were enjoying a sweet treat at the Häagen-Dazs ice cream shop in International Plaza may be victims of identity theft. Investigators say while customers were helping themselves to a snack, thieves were …
Georgia
Macon, GA – Warner Robins woman arrested in Baldwin County identity theft Macon Telegraph (blog) “Had the owner of the original card not been keeping up with his statement, this would have gone on at least a month until the next statement.” King suspects the group has been involved in other identity theft cases. King encourages everyone to monitor …
Macon, GA – Identity theft not a crime in Middle Georgia Macon Telegraph (blog) According to the Official Code of Georgia, identity theft is a felony in Georgia. Based on my experience however, the term “felony” has a different meaning in Middle Georgia and this area is seemingly exempt from such state legislation. This entire …
Mississippi
Gulfport, MS – Federal judge sentences man for identity theft SunHerald.com GULFPORT, Miss. — A federal judge has sentenced a 26-year-old New Orleans man to three years in prison for identity theft involving $10,000 in purchases. The Sun Herald reports ( http://bit.ly/VT9tdF) U.S. District Judge Walter J. Gex III sentenced …
Oklahoma
Tulsa, OK – Man gets prison time for identity theft in vehicle-loan fraud Tulsa World Gallant wrote that, while Osby did not plead guilty to identity theft, the false Social Security number did belong to a real person who has experienced “real harm” from Osby’s conduct. “Identity theft and credit manipulation are serious crimes in our …
South Carolina
SC officials explain $12M no-bid contract San Francisco Chronicle Nikki Haley and Revenue officials have said only Experian, one of the three credit bureau giants, had the expertise and capacity to quickly provide monitoring and call-center services for millions of taxpayers made vulnerable to identity theft by what …
Florence, SC – Learn to prevent ID theft at free seminar in Florence next week WMBF FLORENCE, S.C. (WMBF) – A free seminar on preventing identity theft will be held in Florence next week. The South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs is hosting the seminar on February 22, in conjunction with the South Carolina Bar, the University …
Texas
Dallas, TX – Professor: Battling Facebook identity theft a long, trying legal battle WFAA Now, she can add identity-theft victim to that list. It happened on Facebook, and she’s learning there’s very little she can do about it. The Facebook page identifies the person in the profile photo as 34-year-old Melissa Grant. Brown-Tatum of Grand …
National News
Robocalls, identity theft among top consumer complaints in Wisconsin in 2012 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Complaints of identity theft more than doubled, from 225 in 2011 to 508 in 2012. It’s the first year that it has cracked the top 10 of more than 10,000 complaints, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Identity theft is underreported because many …
Identity Theft — Your Use of Passwords Could Be Your Only Line of Defense Huffington Post (blog) When hackers stole 250,000 passwords from Twitter, some if not all of those victims could become a target for identity theft. In the growing complexity of identity theft schemes, villains are relying on several tactics to gain access to your protected …
Ignore Hollywood; identity theft no laughing matter HeraldNet The new movie “Identity Thief” sees comedian Melissa McCarthy playing crime for yuks, but it’s also giving those who know the serious side of ID theft a chance to nudge viewers in the ribs. Firms that collect credit data are ready for calls from …
IRS Struggles with Tax Fraud Via Identity Theft NewsFactor Network The number of victims whose stolen Social Security numbers were used by thieves to collect unwarranted tax refunds has skyrocketed, and the IRS caseload is daunting. The IRS as of late 2012 had more than 3,000 employees working on identity-theft …
Are you a victim of identity theft? Do you have credit report errors? Have the credit bureaus “verified” fraudulent information and refused to delete the items from your credit reports?
Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), consumers have the right to dispute credit report errors. The credit reporting agencies must block information from appearing in your credit report that is the result of identity theft. The credit bureaus must block the information within 4 business days of receipt of an identity theft report. Federal law gives you the right to sue the credit bureaus if they fail to perform a reasonable reinvestigation or refuse to reinvestigate your credit report dispute.
Contact us for a free case review 24/7 at 1-800-263-9091 and ask for a free sample credit report dispute letter.
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