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| How Identity Thieves Use Your Personal Information
Once identity thieves have obtained your personal information, they will use it in a number of ways to commit fraud:
- They call your credit card issuer and, pretending to be you, ask to change the mailing adddress on your credit card account. The impostor then runs up charges on your account. Because your bills are being sent to the new address, it may take some time before you realize there is a problem.
- They open a new credit card account using your name, date of birth and Social Insurance Number. When they use the credit card and don't pay the bills, the delinquent account is recorded on your credit report.
- They establish phone service in your name.
- They open a bank account in your name and write bad cheques on that account.
- They use counterfeit cheques or debit cards to access the funds in your bank account.
Look for signs of this misuse of your identity, such as:
- Your bank or credit card statements include transactions that you did not make. Or you stop receiving the statements all together.
- You are notified by a creditor that your application for credit was received -- when you did not submit an application.
- A collection agency calls you regarding a default in payment on an account that you didn't open.
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