• About Me
  • Courses
  • Contact
    • Ads
  • Press & Media
  • Free eBook
  • Free Facebook Group
  • Disclosures
    • Privacy
Yes, I Am Cheap
ADVERTISEMENT
  • Home
  • News
    • All
    • Politics
    stimulus

    Why You Might Not Get A Stimulus Payment

    Credit card security, equifax data breach

    How to Claim $125+ from the Equifax Data Breach Settlement

    foreclosure homes - When Does It Make Sense to Refinance?

    When Does It Make Sense to Refinance?

    no apple

    Get A New iPhone? Heck No!

    poor definition

    Mom Fired For Working At McDonald’s While Kid Plays In Park…Was She Wrong?

    What’s Keeping You From Finding A Job

    U.S. Students Fall Behind: Seemingly Get Dumber By The Minute

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Lifestyle
    • All
    • Food
    • Health
    mask insert

    Wearing A Mask? This Can Help You Breathe Easier

    high deductible health plan

    What Is A High Deductible Health Plan?

    free thanksgiving dinner

    How to Get Your Thanksgiving Meal for Free

    using hand sanitizer, your own

    How to Make Your Own Hand Sanitizer

    Yoga pose

    5 Ways to Practice Yoga on a Budget

    Traveling, new cultures, Start a Saving Challenge, Spend Smart on Food

    3 Simple Ways to Save for A Vacation

    Trending Tags

    • Golden Globes
    • Game of Thrones
    • MotoGP 2017
    • eSports
    • Fashion Week
  • Investing
  • Make Money
  • Learn Something
  • News
  • Reduce Debt
  • Rental Property
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
    • All
    • Politics
    stimulus

    Why You Might Not Get A Stimulus Payment

    Credit card security, equifax data breach

    How to Claim $125+ from the Equifax Data Breach Settlement

    foreclosure homes - When Does It Make Sense to Refinance?

    When Does It Make Sense to Refinance?

    no apple

    Get A New iPhone? Heck No!

    poor definition

    Mom Fired For Working At McDonald’s While Kid Plays In Park…Was She Wrong?

    What’s Keeping You From Finding A Job

    U.S. Students Fall Behind: Seemingly Get Dumber By The Minute

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Lifestyle
    • All
    • Food
    • Health
    mask insert

    Wearing A Mask? This Can Help You Breathe Easier

    high deductible health plan

    What Is A High Deductible Health Plan?

    free thanksgiving dinner

    How to Get Your Thanksgiving Meal for Free

    using hand sanitizer, your own

    How to Make Your Own Hand Sanitizer

    Yoga pose

    5 Ways to Practice Yoga on a Budget

    Traveling, new cultures, Start a Saving Challenge, Spend Smart on Food

    3 Simple Ways to Save for A Vacation

    Trending Tags

    • Golden Globes
    • Game of Thrones
    • MotoGP 2017
    • eSports
    • Fashion Week
  • Investing
  • Make Money
  • Learn Something
  • News
  • Reduce Debt
  • Rental Property
No Result
View All Result
Yes, I Am Cheap
No Result
View All Result

I’ve Been Hacked and My Identity Stolen. Now What?

Sandy Smith by Sandy Smith
February 4, 2021
in Credit
0
Protect my ID
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

This post may contain affiliate links which may compensate us based on your interaction. Please read the disclosures for more information.


Welcome back! Have you checked out the free webinar on how to establish credit for your small business?


Somewhere in the world, some hacker – who I hope is living a lonely existence – is pretty proud of himself.  Not to be sexist here because girls can code too, but I envision a twenty-something basement dweller with little to no social life except the persona he has created online and the constant reminders from his mom to take out the garbage.  Some moron, maybe government sponsored, with no conscience and what I hope is a face full of pimples sits in his mom’s basement and bangs out code designed to steal people’s identity and peace of mind.

Earlier this month, Anthem Blue Cross, one of the largest providers of health insurance on the East Coast, confirmed that hackers had gained access to sensitive data belonging to up to 80 million people in what has been called “a sophisticated intrusion”.  I call bullshit.  Rather, some security administrator somewhere clicked on a link that they were not supposed to click on and gave hackers back door access to the encrypted information of millions of people.

Included in the data accessed were names, Social Security numbers, addresses, salary data, date of birth, marital status and just about everything that an identity thief needs to pretend to be you, your spouse or your kids for years to come.  Anyone who had Blue Cross through a number of Anthem’s subsidiary companies dating all the way back to 2004 has been compromised…including me.

Not to worry though, they didn’t access sensitive medical information as far as Anthem can tell. Because, you know, all of the other information they accessed wasn’t sensitive or anything.  I’m sure that by now packets of high value information are floating around the dark web for sale to the highest bidder.  Fun times.

This isn’t new.  Just about every single week you hear stories of large scale hacks or information intrusions with millions of Americans as victims.  At this point, no matter how well you safeguard your own information, it is possible that a large company that somehow doesn’t think that it needs to encrypt sensitive data can leave a trap door open to your information, and there goes your identity.

I was the victim of identity theft some 15 years ago while I was a college student.  Someone somehow gained access to my information (I suspect it was a neighbor) and proceeded to run up a huge credit card bill in my name.  Since my mailman at the time was notorious for dropping my mail off at other people’s homes (I’m thinking he had a problem, you know, reading) I knew that all I could do was close the account, alert the authorities and then put a fraud alert on my credit profile.  Since then I have been very diligent about opting out of credit card offers, having my bank and credit statements delivered electronically, shredding any personally identifying information with a cross cut shredder, actively checking my credit profile, and basically doing everything I could to ensure that no one was able to pretend to be me in order to score a large flat screen television.

But it doesn’t matter what I have done or what you have done to protect your identity.  The fact still remains that large retailers such as Target and Home Depot and banks such as Chase and Wells Fargo have all been hacked in recent months.  While your credit card information can be valuable, the real Holy Grail is everything that Anthem has handed hackers on a silver platter – the information that comprises your entire identity.

Forget about opening credit cards in someone’s name.  What if you can take out a mortgage in their name? My aunt has had this happen.  What about collecting someone else’s Social Security checks for years?  Had this happen to an uncle.  He’s still trying to fix that mess.  What about filing taxes and collecting refunds before the individual has had a chance to do so themselves.  It happens all the time and is more common than you think.  What about someone else pretending to be you for years and years to come? They’re able to commit crimes in your name.  Or go to the doctor and rack up huge bills without paying.  This happened to someone I know and they were only able to prove that this person was not them because my friend had had his appendix removed and this person had all of their organs.  Someone can simply assume your identity and do whatever they want.  That, my friends, is the prospect that millions of us now face.

Not to worry though, because Anthem is offering lots of services to help if you have been a victim of their particular hack.  I’m not buying all that they’re selling because your identity is more than just your credit profile.  And what if you have been a victim of another hack but aren’t a customer of Anthem?  You have options for protecting your identity.

The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) is the federal agency in charge of helping the general public with identity theft.  They have a host of resources available to anyone who may have been a victim of my hacker friend.  Check out their video below.



So, if you may have been the victim of a hacker, here are your next steps:

  1. Immediately place a fraud alert with the three credit reporting agencies.  The best part about this is that you generally need to only call one agency and they will alert the other two agencies.  Just in case they do not, the information for all three credit reporting agencies is below.  Be sure to ask that they show only the last 4 digits of your Social Security number on your report. Equifax 1‑800‑525‑6285; Experian 1‑888‑397‑3742; TransUnion 1‑800‑680‑7289.Fraud alters are generally in place for 90 days, however, you can extend the alert after the initial 90 days.
  2. Obtain copies of your credit report.  Not only are you entitled to a free copy of your report every year from annualcreditreport.com, you are able to obtain a copy of your credit report for free as well if you may have been a victim of identity theft.   This will allow you to see if our fraudster friends have opened new accounts or attempted to establish credit in your name.
  3. If specific accounts have been compromised, be sure to contact those companies and ask to speak to their fraud department.  If you communicate with these companies, be sure to get everything in writing to protect your rights.  If you must mail anything to these companies, keep copies and send everything via certified mail with return receipt to prove that you have mailed documentation on time.
  4. Create an Identity Theft Report. This is a little harder than it sounds, but absolutely worth the process.  You will need to submit a complaint to the FTC which creates an Identity Theft Affidavit.  You will then need to file a police report about the identity theft and get a copy of that report.  You’ll want to have your Identity Theft Affidavit with you when you file the police report.  Attach your FTC Identity Theft Affidavit to your police report to create an Identity Theft Report.  It’s like a Transformer.  The documents have magically transformed. What the Identity Theft Report allows you to do is place an extended fraud alert on your credit file that stays in effect for 7 years.  This is what I did back in the Ice Age in my 20’s.  It also allows you to get two free credit reports from all three credit reporting agencies within one year from the date that your extended alert is placed.  The Identity Theft Affidavit also makes it easier to block identity theft related items from appearing on your credit report.  Speaking of that, on to the next step.
  5. Monitor your credit report and dispute any identity theft related items.  You even have the right to see the documents that the identity thief used to open the accounts.  Sometimes the fraudster is someone that you know, and this can help to identify the thief.I’ve been talking a lot here about identity theft related specifically to your credit, because it’s the most lucrative.  Don’t think that I’ve forgotten about medical, criminal, mortgage or tax theft.  The good folks at the FTC knows that this happens.  There is a wonderful document, What to do if Your Identity Is Stolen (PDF) that you can follow that has a great check list and sample dispute documents that are useful in these situations as well.
  6. Finally, if you’re totally freaked out you can place a freeze on your credit profile.  When a freeze is in place potential creditors will not be able to get a credit report at all.  Depending on what state you’re in, you may be charged a fee to place the credit freeze on your profile.  The only thing to keep in mind is that if you want an external party to view your credit report, you will need to lift the freeze temporarily.  You might be charged a fee for that as well.

There are also paid services out there that can help with identity theft protection.  ProtectMyID comes with a $1 million identity theft insurance policy, will alert you if there are changes to your credit report, monitor the dark web for your information and preform a host of other services.  The good folks at Experian have been kind enough to offer free access to their ProtectMyID solution to a number of my readers!  I’ll give 5 lucky readers a code valid for one year of service.  All you have to do is answer one question.

So, tell me, what do you do to protect your identification?  When leaving a comment be sure to fill out the e-mail line so that I can e-mail your code to you. Good luck!

P.S.  Equifax is offering these one year passes for free.  I haven’t been paid to write about their product or service in any way.  I just thought that you’d appreciate a freebie.

Image found at ProtectMyID.com

Related

Previous Post

10 Ways to Save Money on Life Insurance

Next Post

IRS Early Filing Tax Refund Scam Growing Like Mad

Sandy Smith

Sandy Smith

I started this blog years ago as a way of keeping myself accountable to my own debt reduction plans. Now I'm using this site to help others get out of debt, and learn about personal finance so that they can live their best lives.

Next Post
Don't Fall for the Call Forwarding *72 Scam

IRS Early Filing Tax Refund Scam Growing Like Mad

Stay Connected

  • 5.6k Fans
  • 10.1k Followers
  • 4.7k Followers
ADVERTISEMENT
  • Trending
  • Comments
  • Latest
Tips For Buying A New Car

Tips For Buying A New Car

February 4, 2021
Cost of Living in the 1950’s as Compared to Today in 2013

Cost of Living in the 1950’s as Compared to Today in 2013

February 5, 2021
high deductible health plan

What Is A High Deductible Health Plan?

March 31, 2023
mrs and mrs

Pulling Off A $5,000 Wedding

February 4, 2021
Federal Student Loan Debt Relief

Why Some People Should Wait Before Applying for Student Loan Forgiveness

October 18, 2022
AirBnb Experiences

Why Airbnb Experiences Are The Best Side Hustle

July 10, 2021
mask insert

Wearing A Mask? This Can Help You Breathe Easier

February 21, 2021
Scams

What’s The Deal With All The Scammers Lately?

February 18, 2021

Recent News

Federal Student Loan Debt Relief

Why Some People Should Wait Before Applying for Student Loan Forgiveness

October 18, 2022
AirBnb Experiences

Why Airbnb Experiences Are The Best Side Hustle

July 10, 2021
mask insert

Wearing A Mask? This Can Help You Breathe Easier

February 21, 2021
Scams

What’s The Deal With All The Scammers Lately?

February 18, 2021

Helping you live your best financial life through personal finance news and education

Follow Us Everywhere

Browse by Category

  • About Me
  • Auto
  • Credit
  • Credit Cards
  • Finance 101
  • Food
  • Get Out of Debt Course
  • Health
  • Investing
  • Learn Something
  • Lifestyle
  • Make Money
  • News
  • Off The Reservation
  • Partner Posts
  • Politics
  • Rants
  • Reader Advice
  • Recipes
  • Reduce Debt
  • Rental Property
  • Save Money
  • Scams
  • Special Offers
  • Spend Money
  • Sponsored Posts
  • Video Pick
  • Weekly Roundup
  • Work

Recent News

Federal Student Loan Debt Relief

Why Some People Should Wait Before Applying for Student Loan Forgiveness

October 18, 2022
AirBnb Experiences

Why Airbnb Experiences Are The Best Side Hustle

July 10, 2021
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact

© 2021 Say Yes Services LLC. All rights reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • About Me
  • Courses
  • Contact
    • Ads
  • Press & Media
  • Free eBook
  • Free Facebook Group
  • Disclosures
    • Privacy

© 2021 Say Yes Services LLC. All rights reserved.

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are as essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT