Thieves are faster and more clever than ever -- and your personal identification is a gold mine for them. Here's what to do and when.
By Julie Sturgeon, Bankrate.com
You just saw it on the counter. Honestly, it was right there a second ago. Yet, in a flash, your wallet or purse is AWOL and the hunt is on.
So when do you call off the search and dial up the credit card companies to cancel your accounts?
In these days of burgeoning identity theft, industry insiders insist you pick up the phone instantly. Cate Williams, vice president of financial literacy at Money Management International, lives by a more real-world time frame. If you're in public -- as in you had it at Macy's but not Burdines -- she imposes a 15-minute rule, just enough time to retrace your most recent steps. If you're at home, she increases that limit to an hour.
But when the clock runs down, here's the drill:
Call the credit card companies
You should keep a list of credit card account numbers and phone numbers to the issuing banks' customer service departments somewhere in your home. But few Americans find the motivation until they're frantically searching for a billfold. Credit card companies established easy-to-recall numbers like 1-800-VISA 911 or 1-800-MasterCard with this in mind. These customer service reps walk you through the process and notify the individual banks.
Expect to pass a security test at this gate, Williams says. Could be they'll ask your address, mother's maiden name or details on a recent purchase you made. "They're trying to protect you, not make you cry," she says.
Tell the representative that you have lost your card, followed by the place, time and amount of the last transaction you know you made. Although the ultimate decision rests solely with the issuer, this call doesn't automatically commit you to the disruption of switching account numbers, says John Schettino, vice president in charge of global and North America credit at MasterCard. It is possible to merely flag the old number for unauthorized activity.
"With the competition out there today, many banks will work with the card holder much more closely than in previous times. So if you don't want to block the number because you're headed to Hawaii on vacation, they understand that," Schettino says.
Be aware this flag route means you may be delayed at the store the next time you use the found card since the credit card company needs to verify it's really you rather than an impostor.
"I'd say if you haven't found the card after a few hours of searching, cancel it. Better safe than sorry," says Rosetta Jones, director of Visa USA.
Don't pay for account-closing chores
If you take the cancellation route, both Visa and MasterCard can send replacement plastic into your hands anywhere in the world within 24 hours. In some cases, banks send the new cards to the airport where you are scheduled to land. Everything from your previous account -- amounts due, incentive programs, interest rate deals -- transfers to the new plate, although it's up to you to update merchants with recurring charges, such as your cable bill or health club dues.
The Federal Trade Commission reminds you to pick different Personal Identification Numbers and passwords for these new accounts, too.
Some companies offer to handle these account-closing chores for a fee, a temptation you should resist, says Chris McGoey, an identity theft expert who runs McGoey Security Consulting in Los Angeles and San Francisco. "I'd never feel comfortable handing all my credit information and personal details to some company. Who are these people? Who do they employ? Do they do background screening? It's not worth the risk," he explains.
Notify the DMV
Canceling credit cards takes approximately five minutes each; replacing your driver license requires more tenacity. "Some areas may take the report over the telephone to put an alert on your license in case someone is stopped for a traffic violation," Williams notes. "But you probably still need to go in person for the replacement."
Arrive armed with back-up documentation to prove your existence: a passport, birth certificate, Social Security card, marriage license.
If your state still prints your Social Security number on the driver license (you were too intelligent to carry that Social Security card in your wallet, weren't you?), the game gets uglier. It's not as if you can get a new government ID number in a snap.
"You usually need an extreme case or governmental support like the witness protection program to change your SSN," says McGoey.
Yet if that number turns up in the wrong hands, a stranger has the key to your medical records, IRS payments, passport data and more.
The FTC recommends you first call its hotline (877-IDTHEFT or 438-4338), followed by a call to the Social Security Administration at 800-772-1213.
File a police report
This step, too, requires a trip to your local precinct. But filing an official report adds validity to your story. "It tells the world, 'I really did lose the card; I'm not just having buyer's remorse over a $900 purchase,'" Williams explains. Definitely save a copy of the report as proof should odd purchases begin cropping up in your account.
If you last saw your pocketbook in a public place, be succinctly specific with the details: "I walked into the President's Hall meeting room at the Wyndham Hotel, dropped my purse in a chair and headed for the podium. There were 14 people in the room. When I returned approximately seven minutes later, my purse had disappeared."
Dial the credit bureaus
Finally, a break: Pick any of the three credit reporting agencies and it will share the information with the other two and add a "security alert" to your file, says Maxine Sweet, vice president of public affairs at Experian.
This alert is a temporary statement that advises any company accessing your report to please verify your identification before granting credit because you may be a victim of fraud. After you receive your reports you can determine if there has been any fraudulent activity and decide if you need to add a "permanent" alert.
To do so, you must provide proof of your address and proof of your phone number such as a copy of your phone bill. That statement does not block access, but provides a phone number for the company to contact you to verify your identity before granting credit.
The temporary alert period varies by credit reporting agency; Experian's remains for 90 days. The permanent alert remains for seven years on all the reports. To remove that alert, you must send the request in writing with proof of your identity.
Contacting a credit bureau to report fraudEquifax: Call 1-800-525-6285 and write to P.O. Box 740241, Atlanta, GA. 30374-0241
Experian: Call 1-888-EXPERIAN (397-3742) and write to P.O. Box 9532, Allen, TX 75013
TransUnion: Call 1-800-680-7289 and write to Fraud Victim Assistance Division, P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA. 92834-6790
Tell your local bank
According to the FTC, no federal law limits your losses should someone obtain your checks and forge your signature. State laws usually hold the bank responsible in this case, but the Catch-22 comes when they also require you to "take reasonable care" of your account. Stay in the law's good graces by closing your current checking account and reopening a new one. The bank will notify its internal processors about the now defunct account, but the FTC recommends you also get on the horn and call the check verification services to stop someone from using one of your checks at a merchant's cash register.
Check verification services
TeleCheck: 1-800-710-9898 or 927-0188
Certegy, Inc.: 1-800-437-5120
International Check Services: 1-800-631-9656
Don't sweat the small stuff
Thieves are wising up -- if your wallet has fallen into the wrong hands, the criminals' latest trick is to spend the cash and save the department store-issued credit cards, Williams says. Four days later, they test the shopping waters to see what you've forgotten to close. So don't put off contacting Home Depot and Target to cancel those cards -- even if the Visas and MasterCards register no illicit use.
Although crooks could use your Blockbuster ID, union membership certificate or library card to build the illusion needed to establish bogus credit down the line, Williams doubts these cards represent immediate financial loss. "The bad guys won't stop by Kroger and say, 'Let's buy a six-pack of beer and use the amenity card to get 12 cents off,'" she points out. Replace these at your convenience.
If you do discover later the dog hid your wallet in the closet, just move forward with the new credit card numbers. However, conduct a proper burial for your old accounts, Schettino warns: Shred the magnetic strip, lest criminals re-encode it with skimmed information.
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