GREAT ADVICE [RE-wrenches]

Dana Orzel slrwrk at ocinet.net
Tue Feb 5 21:53:22 PST 2002


 GREAT ADVICE from a friend of mine


GOOD ADVICE

Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine, do both sides of
each license, credit card, etc. You will know what you had in your wallet
and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to call and cancel.
Keep the photocopy in a safe place.    A corporate attorney sent this out to
the employees in his company. I  pass it along, for your information.
We've all heard horror stories about fraud that's committed us in stealing a
name, address, Social Security, credit cards, etc.
Unfortunately I, an attorney, have firsthand knowledge because my wallet was
stolen last month.  Within a week, the  thieve(s) ordered an expensive
monthly cell phone package, applied  for a VISA credit card, had a credit
line approved to buy a Gateway computer, received a PIN number from DMV to
change my driving record  information online, and more.
But here's some critical information to limit the damage in case this
happens to you or someone you know:
We have been told  we should cancel your credit cards immediately.  But the
key is having the toll  free numbers and your card numbers handy so you know
whom to call.
Keep those where you can find them easily.
File a police report  immediately in the jurisdiction where it was stolen,
this proves to credit
providers you were diligent, and is a first step toward an investigation (if
there ever is one).
But here's what is perhaps most important: (I never ever thought to do this)
Call the three national credit reporting organizations immediately to place
a fraud alert on your name and Social Security number.  I had never heard of
doing that until advised by a bank that called to tell me an application for
credit was made over the Internet in my name.
The  alert means any company that checks your credit knows your  information
was stolen and they have to contact you by phone to  authorize new credit.
By the timeI was advised to do this, almost  two  weeks after the theft, all
the damage had been done.
There are records of all the credit checks initiated by the thieves'
purchases, none of which I knew about before placing the alert. Since then,
no additional damage has been done, and the thieves threw my wallet away
this weekend (someone turned it in). It seems to have stopped them in their
tracks.
The numbers are:
Equifax: 1-800-525-6285
Experian (formerly TRW): 1-888-397-3742
Trans Union: 1-800-680-7289
Social Security Administration (fraud line):
1-800-269-0271
We pass along jokes; we pass along just about everything. Do think about
passing this information along. It could really help someone.

- - - -
To send a message: RE-wrenches at topica.com

Archive of previous messages: http://www.topica.com/lists/RE-wrenches/

List rules & etiquette: http://www.mrsharkey.com/wrenches/etiquete.htm

Check out participant bios: www.mrsharkey.com/wrenches/index.html

Hosted by Home Power magazine

Moderator: michael.welch at homepower.com

==^================================================================
This email was sent to: michael.welch at homepower.com

EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?bz8Qcs.bz9JC9
Or send an email to: RE-wrenches-unsubscribe at topica.com

T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail!
http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register
==^================================================================





More information about the RE-wrenches mailing list