Credit and Tax Fraud Security

Key Tools to Prevent and Detect Identity Theft/Fraud

1. Credit Monitoring – tracks changes on your credit file and alerts you of certain changes that might indicate potential fraud
2. Identity Monitoring – another detection tool that alerts you if your personal information is being used. It adds another layer of protection for your personal information
3. Suppressing Credit Reports – not granting creditors access to your credit report. You are still able to access your own credit report
4. Credit Freeze (security freeze) – allows you to restrict access to your credit report, which in turn makes it more difficult for identity thieves to open new accounts in your name.
   
   ** Find out more at https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0497-credit-freeze-faqs 

Tips on Checking your Credit:

1. Check your free credit reports at least once a year at each credit bureau to ensure that fraudulent accounts have not been opened in your name.
2. To order your free annual report from all three credit bureaus, visit www.annualcreditreport.com
3.  Attempt to obtain a credit report for your child on his/her 16^th birthday. Ideally, there won’t be one but if there is and it contains inaccurate information, this may be an indication of fraud which gives you ample time to resolve the problem before your child applies for college financial aid or his/her first loan.

Tips to Safeguard Your Bank Statements and Checks:

1. Review your transactions. Check your bank and credit card statements monthly for signs of suspicious activity. You can also spot abnormal transactions right away by regularly tracking account activity through online or mobile banking.
2. Call if statements are late. If your statement is late by more than a couple days, call your credit card company or bank to confirm your billing address and account balances.
3. Request to receive bank and credit card statements via email or online when possible. Electronic statements are harder to steal than paper ones.
4. Safeguard your paper checks. Paper checks are risky because they have your checking account and bank routing number on them. When ordering new checks, pick them up from the bank instead of having them mailed to your home.

Tax Fraud:

An identity thief may file a tax return using your Social Security number (SSN) to receive a refund. If the thief already filed a return using your SSN, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will believe that you already filed.

How to resolve Tax Fraud:

o   If you receive a notice from the IRS that leads you to believe someone may have used your Social Security number fraudulently, notify the IRS immediately by responding to the name and number printed on the notice or letter

§  Complete IRS FORM 14039, Identity Theft Affidavit.

§  If the notice says you were paid by an employer you don’t know, send a letter to the employer explaining that someone stole your identity

§  File your tax return and pay any taxes you owe. You might have to mail paper tax returns