What to do after an Identity Theft Incident
It’s almost like you’re dreaming and the dream you’re having is a nightmare.
You get a bill from your credit card company saying you owe thousands more than you should.
Or you go to apply for a Home Equity Line of Credit only to find that your FICO score has dropped 180 points in the last six months.
Or you get a phone call from our office asking to confirm the wire instructions for the $300,000 wire transfer you just requested (but actually didn’t).
But no matter how hard you pinch, this isn’t something you’re waking up from and in fact, you’ve become a victim of identity theft.
If you find yourself in a situation like this, there’s no time to lose. You have to act quickly to mitigate any further damage.
And so, what do you do?
The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy issued an Investor Alert that outlined the steps of what to do after an identity theft incident. We read through the Alert and knew we had to get it into the hands of our clients so that you are well prepared in case something like this happens to you.
You can find the Alert here: Investor Alert
Broadly, here are the steps the Alert recommends taking if you find yourself in this situation:
· Contact your investment firm and other financial institutions immediately
· Change your online account passwords or passphrases
· Close compromised accounts
· Activate two-step or “multifactor” verification, if available
· Monitor your investment accounts for suspicious activity
· Turn “on” account alert
· Place a credit freeze or fraud alert on your credit file
· Monitor your credit reports
· Consider creating an Identify Theft Report
· Document all communications in writing
Please take a few minutes to read the entire Alert, as the details it provides are important to
accomplishing the steps listed above. Heck, you might even consider going the old-fashioned
way and printing out a copy!
Your Intrinsic Wealth Counsel Team
