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Credit Card Fraud - It Happens All Too Frequently

Last Updated: June 25, 2010

Nearly 10 million Americans fell victim to some kind of identity theft in 2009. A typical victim spends 44 hours recovering from identity theft and and averge of $500 repairing damage on their credit reports. In 16% of all cases, the victims knew the person who had misused their personal information. One aspect of identity theft is credit card fraud and unfortunately this type of criminal activity happens every day.

It is amazingly easy to open a credit card account in someone else's name. Think it can't happen to you?? All the information needed to open an account in your name is floating around on the internet right now! Before I relate this reader's story, I URGE you to pull your credit report if you haven't done so in the last 6 months. You may also want to read this blog post about how thieves are taking advantage of radio chips embedded in your credit cards to swipe your information.

True Story From a Reader

I asked one of our readers to relate her success in removing information from her credit reports as a result of someone impersonating her by filling out a pre-approved credit application, forging her name and receiving the cards. Our reader was lucky - she knew who had impersonated her. But it wasn't all luck - she acted promptly on this information. An estimated 25% of victims did not discover their identity had been stolen until after 6 months of when the accounts were unknowingly opened in their names. Before we get to our reader's letter, let's go over the steps she took so you can make some mental notes as you read.

• She already knew who had impersonated her.
• She was able to take him to court and he plead guilty.
• Her case was proved in court.
• She sent the court documents to both the creditors who had unknowingly issued the fraudulent cards and to all the credit bureaus.
• Persistent was the key in her efforts to get her credit cleared up.

I'll explain a little bit more about what I had to do to straighten out the mess and, hopefully, it may help the next person who finds himself in my predicament.

First of all, I was lucky enough to know who did this to me-- my ex-husband. And I was lucky to have him plead guilty in court so I had court documents to prove it. You would think that would be enough to clear my name. Guess again! The credit card agencies told me it was a "marital dispute" and they didn't care if the NY State Supreme Court found him guilty. They said they have their own rules. That infuriated me. Why should an out-of-state credit company offer credit to someone who resides in another state if they don't follow the rules of that state's court? Then they should only offer credit to residents in their own state!

I sent each credit card company a letter with the court documents attached. I had to send them more than once because, it seems, they lose paperwork easily. I had to keep calling and hounding them day after day. If the person I reached couldn't help me, I'd ask to speak to someone who could (their supervisor). If anyone has never had to call a credit card company, be put on hold, be transferred around to every department and every person there, until FINALLY someone that may possibly be intelligent enough to listen and realize that a supervisor needs to handle it answers-- You're lucky. It's a nightmare. They want their money and they don't care if you're innocent or not. I can't tell you how many hundreds of hours it has taken me. You need to be persistent and make sure that you document every single person you have talked to, the date, and what they are going to do for you. Keep following up. I won't kid you, it is a nightmare.

My ex-husband forged my name to 13 credit card applications. The signature did not look anything like mine. Some of the information on the application was incorrect (my salary). Credit card companies never check the signature (such as requesting a copy of driver's licence, etc.). Ironically, in order to request your credit report from Equifax, Trans Union, Experian/TR, you need to send in copies of your Social Security card, driver's license, and sometimes a utility bill to prove who you are! But not credit card companies. They're just happy someone mails back their pre-approval application. Credit card companies, who mail you these pre-approval offers constantly, never know who completes those applications. Have you ever received your neighbor's mail by mistake? It happens!

Another scary thought-- I disputed my Equifax report. I sent in a lot of documents to prove my innocence and most of it was personal information-- such as social security number, account numbers, etc. In other words, things you don't want 'lost'. I mailed this information to Equifax and waited to hear from them. I finally called them two months later and asked them my status. They said they never received it. I know the address was correct and printed clearly. It scares me to think about what might have happened to my paperwork. It is also very difficult to contact these credit reporting agencies without getting a recording. It's frustrating because, if you mail them something, they claim they haven't received it. And you can't get in touch with them by telephone. I found that Equifax frequently changes their 1-800 fraud department phone number that is printed on the top of your credit report. They really have you over a barrel and yet your life depends on them having correct information on you.

Anyway, hope this helped. If you're innocent, you have to stand up for your rights. Be persistent. Eventually, you'll get it cleared. It has taken me almost 2 years but progress has been made. What I have gone through (this is only part of it), has changed my life.

Things You Can Do to Prevent This From Happening to You

• Shred all credit cards applications received by you in the mail.
• Pull your credit report every 6 months to verify that there are no accounts in your name that you don't know about.
• Write to the credit bureaus and the mailing list houses to get your name off of their lists. The address and procedures are here.
• For in-depth information on keeping your credit report safe from thieves, order our book!

Here is a list of what you can do to if you are a victim of identity fraud.