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Identity Theft Alerts

March 2011

A credit fraud alert is a preliminary hold on your credit if you suspect that you are or may be a victim of identity theft. A fraud alert notifies potential creditors that they should contact you directly via phone before issuing any credit in your name. This will help ensure that anyone attempting to get credit using your name is unable to do so.

A credit fraud alert is not a permanent solution, nor is it always effective. Initial fraud alerts remain on your credit report for 90 days. Fraud alerts also require creditors to actually check your credit before issuing new debts in your name. Some creditors, namely phone or utility companies, do not check credit reports before issuing credit. It’s important to continue to engage in proactive identity theft monitoring if you suspect you may be at risk of identity theft.

If you are a victim of identity theft, you will want an extended fraud victim alert placed on your file. The extended alert must be accompanied by a valid identity theft report and police report. Extended alerts stay on your identity theft report for seven years and will prevent creditors from borrowing against your name without confirming your identity via phone.

Finally, if you are a member of the military deployed on active duty, you can place a one-year active duty fraud alert on your credit report, notifying any new creditors that you are not opening accounts, because you are not in the country. All members of the military should place an active duty alert on their credit report before being deployed to prevent military identity theft.

Enroll in myID’s proactive identity theft alerts now to be notified immediately when your identity is at risk for new account fraud and potential identity theft.

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