What to do When Personal Information has been Compromised

Has your information been compromised due to a data breach or other illegal activity? If so, there are steps to take to minimize your risk of experiencing Identity Theft. Identity Theft is when someone uses another person’s identity to obtain credit, property and/or money. Identity thieves can even obtain driver’s licenses, lines of credit and other consumer accounts.

Please order and carefully review your credit report(s) by visiting www.annualcreditreport.com or call 1-877-322-8228. Look for suspicious activity, addresses and/or accounts that you don’t recognize. You may obtain one free credit report from each of the three credit reporting agencies (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion) once a year. We recommend ordering one credit report from a different credit reporting agency every few months.

  • Not receiving financial statements or bills when expected
  • Receiving denials of credit for which you did not apply
  • Receiving unexpected credit card or account statements
  • Receiving correspondence about purchases that you did not make
  • Incorrect information on your credit report

If you find any errors or suspicious activity, save a copy of your report and contact the credit reporting agency to place a fraud alert on your credit reports. This alert notifies creditors to follow specific procedures before opening new credit accounts in your name or making changes to existing accounts. Use the following toll-free numbers to contact the credit reporting agencies to place an initial 90-day fraud alert.

Experian: 1-888-397-3742
Equifax: 1-800-525-6285
TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289

Learn more by visiting the Federal Trade Commission’s website at www.identitytheft.gov.

Additional information about Identity Theft protection can be found on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's website.

  • Close any accounts that have been used fraudulently
  • Contact the security or fraud department of each company where any account was opened or changed without your permission. Follow up in writing with copies of supporting documents.
  • Report the theft to the Federal Trade Commission at ftc.gov/idtheft and follow their steps to recovery
  • Keep a copy of all correspondence that you have regarding the fraudulent activity on your accounts. File a police report with law enforcement officials to help you with creditors who may ask for proof of the crime.