Identity theft and fraud has been around since the 90’s and has raked in billion dollars for the criminal industry and although the number of identity theft has declined, you may realize that total cost to Americans have been continuously rising, in the recent years the figures as risen up to $2 billion dollars lost secondary to identity theft.

Why is that? One reason can be attributed to the popularity of America in the global arena, the country sits like a big target for the global market due to the vigorous American consumerism add to that an increasingly plastic financial system, making it an easy prey to those who wish to commit identity theft and so even as technology and industry goes global, unfortunately so does crime, with this is mind it is wise to consider an identity theft shield.

Identity Theft Shield – What It Can Do For You

Just think about it, technology makes us reachable, you can transact with someone in China while you are in America, so even as this sound good, you may also consider that identity theft is as global as well and everyone is getting in on the action. One of the most stand out case involved an Asian gang that run rampant counterfeiting credit cards even using the law on their side. A gang recruit raked in a total of $615,000 in the span of a year.

According to FTC, credit card fraud remains to be the number one culprit in identity theft even as experts predicted that credit cards would cease to exist, it remains a driving force in the financial industry. Leading one to ask, so what’s a credit card holder to do? You should protect yourself and minimize risk of credit card identity theft by getting an identity theft shield

Identity theft shield can help you protect your personal and financial records. It can help you monitor your financial activities and receive and updated credit report, enabling you to notice at the earliest stage if any fraudulent activities are happening under your account. And even if you we’re victimized by identity theft, identity theft shield can help you restore your credit reputation giving you back your good name and reputation. So even if a notorious gang like that of the Asian gang of the 1990’s re-emerge, you can feel safe and secure that even as our world remains to be a plastic economy and we be secured from the protection of an identity theft shield.

Found some discrepancies in your credit card statement or your credit report and suspect you’ve been victimized by identity thieves, who should you call? You should know your identity theft hotline. You can also call your bank, your credit card company and the store where you have a credit line, this should be done in order to minimize your liability. It is easier to get out of the problem when you called and reported the possibility of identity theft.

Depending on your situation, you can report identity theft to the following agencies:

The Federal Trade Commission

If you are having a difficult time connecting to the institution involved in your case, you can call the FTC instead.

The Commission is mandated by the Identity Theft & Assumption Deterrence Act of 1998 to accept and process complaints filed by identity theft victims, they are also responsible in directing your complaints to the appropriate industry including the major credit and police agencies. Take note of the FTC identity theft hotline 1-877-IDTHEFT (or 1-877-438-4338). You can also go their website and fill up the complaint form.

The Social Security Administration

The SSA does not usually provide assistance to identity theft victims, but they do have a system in place that can help you solve your dilemma. You can call them at their hotline 800-269-0271, although this is not an identity theft hotline, but you can contact SSA at that number or you can use their website to file a complaint.

In case you are a victim of SSN theft you can change your number, if you fall under the criteria of SSA’s victims of fraud, you can learn more about this at their website. But even if you are given a new SSN and the theft is reported to the proper authorities, it is not a guarantee that your all your problems will be solved, as it does not guarantee a fresh credit rating, credit records from your two SSNs can be combined by different Bureaus, plus even if you are given a fresh start, having no record can also mean a hard time trying to gain credit.

The Three Major Credit Bureaus

These three major credit bureaus Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion, are responsible for your credit rating as such you can get periodic credit reports from them and in cases of identity theft you can call their identity theft hotlines.

Remember to report any inconsistencies or discrepancies in your credit records at once to the proper agencies, always keep their identity theft hotline accessible to you. Reporting your concerns at the earliest possible time will help minimize the damage and make life easier for you in the long run.

Have you been a victim of identity theft, or are you afraid to become one? Maybe it’s because you spend majority of your life online. You shop, bank, watch movies, listen to music, doing most everything online. It is said that 50% of identity theft happens via the internet and it’s done mostly thru phishing e-mails scams, but there are a lot of ways you can get phishing protection. You can download free software if you don’t trust your browsers. But many of the latest browsers come with their own phishing protection and they are aware of the threat and come up with solutions to help protect their consumers.

However should you be victimized. Here are 3 steps to point you in the right direction.

1.    You can call any of the three major credit bureaus, Experian, Equifax or TransUnion. Do this so they can flag your credit documents, this way creditors are aware of your situation and any credit applied under your name will have to be verified. You can also work with them to work out which entries on your credit files are fraudulent and let creditors know that those entries are disputed. This will help you minimize damage to your credit.

2.    Call local authorities. File a police report and supply all necessary documents and information including disputed accounts. This will help prove you are a victim of identity theft.

3.    And lastly call the FTC, they will not investigate your case but they will help point you in the right direction and you can file a fraud affidavit with them as well.

Now, are you done yet? Of course not, now that you let the authorities know about your situation and you’re on your way to having everything fixed. Now is not the time to sit. You should take steps to ensure that this will not happen again. First ensure that your personal information is safe and secure, tear up any documents you don’t need and throw them in separate trash bins.

Since you do spend time online ensure that your computer has the latest version of your anti-virus software, malware protection programs and that your firewall is turned on. By now you are aware of the dangers of phishing, don’t be a victim of phishing scams, protect yourself and ensure that your browser’s phishing protection is activated or if you’re not sure it may be a good idea to invest in a separate phishing protection software.