Detective Wendy Bynes has investigated numerous cases of identity theft and fraudulent financial activity. She knows, there is nothing more frustrating to these victims than having to clear their financial good names. With that in mind, Detective Bynes offers this information for ID theft victims:
With the ever increasing use of technology, we are seeing an increase in
the number of identity thefts. In 2011 there were 11.6 million U.S. adults who
were the victims of identity theft. The average victim spent $354 and twelve
hours to clear their records and resolve the problem.
Identity thieves will use
the victim’s established credit to open new accounts, obtain auto or home loans
and sometimes create a criminal record in the victim’s name. (The statistics cited
are from the Javelin Strategy & Research “2012 Identity Fraud Report”
released in Feb 2012)
Investigating this type of crime is often difficult
because banks and other financial institutions will not release the victim’s
information without prior written authorization or a court order. As a victim,
you will need to provide the investigating law enforcement agency with
complete bank/credit account numbers. You will also need to provide copies of the statements
showing the dates and times of the unauthorized charges and which company they
were made to. The sooner the report is
filed and the necessary information is provided...the better. If reported soon
enough we can sometimes obtain surveillance video from merchants where the
fraudulent charges occur.
Listed below are links to a few resources for
protecting yourself from identity theft and what to do once you have become the
victim of identity theft:
