Frequently Asked Questions

Identity theft is the unlawful use of another person's account or identifying information without the owner's permission. Identity theft may take many forms. Common methods of identity theft include credit card or other financial institution fraud, phone or utility service theft, and the taking of government documents or benefits. Federal and state authorities alike have labeled it the country's fastest growing white collar crime since the late 1990's.

Read more: What is Identity Theft?

Read more: What Should I Do If My Identity Has Been Stolen?

If you feel you have been a victim of identity theft, contact the FTC’s Identity Theft Hotline toll-free at 1-877-IDTHEFT (438-4338); by mail: Identity Theft Clearinghouse, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20580; or online.

Phishing is the act of sending an e-mail to a user falsely claiming to be an established legitimate enterprise in an attempt to scam the user into surrendering private information that will be used for identity theft. The e-mail directs the user to visit a website where they are asked to update personal information, such as passwords and credit card, social security, and account numbers that the legitimate organization already has. The website, however, is bogus and set up only to steal the user’s information.

Read more: What is Phishing?

Vishing is the telephone equivalent of phishing. Vishing is the act of using the telephone in an attempt to scam the user into surrendering private information that will be used for identity theft. The scammer usually pretends to be a legitimate business, and fools the victim into thinking he or she will profit.

Read more: What is Vishing?

Pharming happens when a user is fooled into thinking a web site is legitimate based on how it looks. The user can be fooled into entering sensitive data such as a password or credit card number into the false web site. It is different than phishing in that the attacker does not have to rely on having the user click a link in an e-mail to deceive the user - even if the user correctly enters a URL (web address) into a browser's address bar, the attacker can still redirect the user to a malicious web site.

Read more: What is Pharming?

If your wallet has been lost or stolen, take the following actions:

• Call the three major credit reporting agencies (Equifax: 1-800-525-6285, Experian: 1-888-397-3742 and Trans Union: 1-800-680-7289) and ask them to immediately place a Fraud Alert on your name and Social Security number. 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.
• Notify the SSN national fraud hotline at 1-800-269-0271.
• Cancel your credit cards. Include the numbers for VISA and MasterCard customer service.
• File a police report the same day, if at all possible, in the jurisdiction where your wallet was stolen.

Note: Your credit union might want to add information about contacting a member service representative.