What to do first when your identity is stolen
The Federal Trade Commission has a new resource to help people whose identity is stolen, to report the
theft and begin the restoration process at IdentityTheft.gov. In addition to engaging in the FTC process, we recommend the following basic first steps:
- Contact any financial entities you deal with:
- Banks
- Credit Cards
- Investment companies
- Freeze your credit with reporting agencies
- Pull and review your credit reports to look for anything unusual
- Review the last few of months of bank statements and credit card statements
- Get a PIN from the IRS to prevent fraudulent returns filed on your behalf
This is a short and far-from-comprehensive list to get started on when you have your identity stolen. If you need help protecting yourself from further fraud, contact a ShindelRock tax professional.