Six Signs of Credit Identity Theft to Watch Out For:
When it comes to your identity, you can never be too careful these days. That’s why it’s good to be familiar with any warnings signals of credit identity theft. It would be a shame to ruin an
excellent credit score, that you’ve worked so hard to achieve. No one wants to be a victim of ID theft, but it can happen to anyone.
Here’s what to watch out for so you can stop identity theft right away.
1) Unauthorized Purchases – always check over your credit card statement and make sure all the purchases are your own. It’s possible someone could have gotten your credit card information by phishing it from other sites online, or cracked a company’s database.
2) Unexpected Approved Credit Card Arrives – if you receive an approved credit card in the mail that you didn’t apply for, contact that company right away and cancel it. Many companies can send you a sort of “pre-approved credit card” but that’s a different situation.
3) Credit Card Denial – if you have recently applied for a credit card and know that you have a good credit standing, but get denied, you could have been defrauded. The best thing to do is to get a copy of your credit report and score as soon as possible to look for an authorized movements or marks on your report. It is possible someone has been using your credit for themselves and damaging it. You also might get a denial in the mail for a card you didn’t apply for at all, this is an even more sure sign of identity theft.
4) Unexpected Bank Statements – this could be a clear indicator of ID theft, as someone could have opened bank accounts in your name and that’s why you’re receiving the statements. Contact the issuing bank right away and cancel the accounts.
5) Statements Stop Arriving – if your credit card or bank statements stop arriving at your home, it could be that somebody is intercepting these statements. They also could have gotten into your accounts and redirected the mailing delivery address. In this case it’s good not only to contact the issuing bank, but also check with the postal service to see if you mail is getting delivered correctly.
6) Credit History Isn’t Right – this is an easy one to spot ID theft, and it is something that should be checked at least once a year if not every six months. Contact any companies that you didn’t interact with to resolve the issue immediately.
With criminals being more technically savvy than in previous eras, it’s more important than ever to watch over your credit reports to avoid identity theft. The first step is always to get in touch with any of these companies immediately and take action, never wait.
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