Identity Theft in the USA — How to Protect Yourself: Credit Freeze, Fraud Alert, IdentityTheft.gov

Identity theft (kradzież tożsamości) is the use of your personal information (SSN, date of birth, address) to open credit accounts, loans, and withdrawals in your name. In the USA, 9.6 million victims annually. Poles are particularly targeted — our SSNs are often in circulation after breaches, and we do little to protect our credit.

What a Fraudster Can Do with Your Data

• Open credit cards in your name — and not pay the bills
• Take out an auto/mortgage loan
• Open a bank account and launder dirty money
• File a tax return before you do (and steal your refund)
• Apply for government benefits (unemployment, SNAP) — and take them
• Apply for medical insurance and receive treatment at your expense
• Register a business in your name — and commit fraud
• during an arrest (your criminal record!)

Where Your Data Comes From

• Data breaches — Equifax (147M people in 2017), Target, Yahoo, T-Mobile, AT&T. Your data is almost certainly already on the darknet.
• Stolen mail/documents
• Phishing — a scammer asks for your SSN through a fake message
• Stolen passports/drivers' licenses
• Stolen tax documents (W-2) from accounting offices
• Data leaks from Polish companies also end up on the darknet

BEST DEFENSE: Credit Freeze

This is crucial. A credit freeze (zamrożenie kredytu) is the most effective protection for most people. What it does:

• Blocks access to your credit report for everyone (banks, loans, cards)
• Without your credit report, NO ONE can give you a new loan/card
• Even if a fraudster has your SSN, they cannot open an account
• Free (since 2018 federal law)
• DOES NOT affect your credit score
• DOES NOT affect existing accounts
• You can "thaw" it temporarily (e.g., when you apply for a card) and freeze it again

How to Set Up a Credit Freeze — 3 Steps

You must do this with each of the 3 bureaus:

1. Equifax

• equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/credit-freeze/
• Phone: 1-800-685-1111
• Or by mail: P.O. Box 105788, Atlanta, GA 30348-5788

2. Experian

• experian.com/freeze
• Phone: 1-888-397-3742
• Or by mail: P.O. Box 9554, Allen, TX 75013

3. TransUnion

• transunion.com/credit-freeze
• Phone: 1-888-909-8872
• Or by mail: P.O. Box 160, Woodlyn, PA 19094

Each of them will give you a PIN/password. STORE it securely (password manager) — it will be needed to thaw your credit.

4 (bonus): ChexSystems freeze

ChexSystems checks for banks before opening an account. A freeze here prevents a fraudster from opening accounts:

• chexsystems.com/security-freeze

Fraud Alert — An Alternative

If you do not want a freeze, you can instead:

• Initial Fraud Alert — 1 year, banks must verify your identity before opening accounts
• Extended Fraud Alert — 7 years, requires proof of identity theft (police report)
• Military Active Duty Alert — 1 year for active military

Fraud Alert is weaker than a freeze (banks "must verify" but do not always check thoroughly). Freeze recommended.

How to Check if Someone Has Stolen Your Identity

1. Free Credit Reports

Under federal law, you are entitled to 1 free credit report per year from each of the 3 bureaus:

• annualcreditreport.com — official federal site
• Strategy: check 1 bureau every 4 months (rotation) — you have coverage all year
• NOTE: only annualcreditreport.com is free. Other sites claiming "free credit report" are deceptive (paid subscriptions).

2. Check Carefully

Read the entire report and look for:

• Accounts you did not open
• Credit applications you did not submit
• Addresses where you did not live
• Unknown changes to accounts

3. IRS Identity Protection PIN

A federal program — the IRS gives you a 6-digit PIN required when filing your tax return. Without the PIN, a fraudster cannot file a false return in your name.

• IRS — Get IP PIN
• Free, set up online
• The PIN changes every year

If You Have Already Become a Victim — What to Do

First Hour

1. Open IdentityTheft.gov (federal official FTC site)
2. Fill out the Identity Theft Report — automatic action plan
3. Print the Identity Theft Affidavit (FTC form) — crucial

First 24 Hours

1. File a police report — required by many banks
2. Contact banks — close compromised accounts
3. Credit freeze with all 3 bureaus (if not done yet)
4. Change all passwords, enable 2FA
5. Check transactions on all accounts

First Week

1. Report to SSA if your SSN has been used: 1-800-269-0271
2. Report to USPIS (postal service) if your address was changed without your consent
3. Report to DMV if someone used your driver's license
4. Report to IRS if a tax scam: irs.gov/identity-theft
5. Every company with which the fraudster opened an account — demand written confirmation that the account is closed

First Month

• Monitor all 3 credit reports
• Check your bank accounts daily
• Keep copies of everything — they will be needed for months

Mitigation — What to Do BEFORE Anything Happens

1. Credit freeze with all 3 bureaus (key!)
2. IRS IP PIN (key for taxes)
3. 2FA on everything that has 2FA — bank, email, social media
4. Password manager + unique passwords
5. Do not throw away papers with SSN/full address — shred
6. Do not write down SSN where not necessary — pediatricians, schools, dentists often do NOT need it
7. Sign up for credit monitoring (free: Credit Karma, Mint, Experian Boost)
8. USPS Informed Delivery — daily photos of mail coming to you. You will detect if someone opened your mailbox.

Specific to the Polish Community

• SSN in Polish accounting offices — some may be poorly secured. Ask how they protect data.
• Polish credit unions (PSFCU, PNA FCU) — have good quality fraud teams. But still — freeze + 2FA everywhere.
• NIP/PESEL card — Polish identifiers are also targeted by scammers. Poland has "Bezpieczny PESEL" — a system for securing PESEL at obywatel.gov.pl. Do this for family in Poland.

Official Links

• IdentityTheft.gov — federal center
• AnnualCreditReport.com — official free reports
• Equifax | Experian | TransUnion
• IRS Identity Theft Central
• SSA — Identity Theft
• Obywatel.gov.pl — Secure PESEL (PL)

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