Have you ever gotten a data breach notification letter? It’s scary to read that your information has been compromised and might be out there for criminals to access. In this blog post, we will cover some of the steps what to do if your personal information has been compromised in a data breach.
First, it’s important to remember that just because you’re a data breach victim does not mean you’ve been a victim of identity theft. For more about the difference, check out our blog post. Also, if you’re curious if you’re more likely to have your identity stolen if you’ve gotten such a notice, the answer is yes. You are 11 times more likely to be a victim, according to the 2017 Identity Fraud Study by Javelin Strategy & Research.
What to do if your personal information has been compromised: Your next steps after receiving the notice depend upon what kind of information was breached.
If your email address/password was breached
- You should reset your password immediately. Be sure to never reuse passwords across multiple sites. Why? This very scenario answers that question. If your password for one site is compromised and you’ve used that same passwords on other sites, you are now at risk at multiple sites. For the latest advice on how to create the strongest passwords, read our blog post.
If your Social Security number was breached
- This would be a really good time to sign up for an identity theft restoration service. If you sign up for an annual LibertyID membership, you won’t have to worry. No matter what type of identity theft you’re facing, if you’re a LibertyID member and your identity is stolen, we will fix it.
- You should call the credit reporting agencies — Experian (888-397-3742), Equifax (800-525-6285) and TransUnion (800-680-7289). While the Identity Theft Resource Center recommends placing 90-day fraud alerts with each one, we suggest taking it a step further and freezing your credit (for a complete primer on how to do it, check out our post). It’s just important to note that there are limitations to a credit freeze; namely, you can still have your identity stolen even if you have a credit freeze in place.
- Visit www.annualcreditreport.com to monitor your credit report over the next year. You’re entitled to one free credit report from each agency annually. Stagger them so that you’re ordering one from TransUnion in January, one from Experian in May and one from Equifax in September (for example).
- File your next tax return as early as possible to avoid an identity thief doing so and filing a tax refund in your name. For more on this subject, visit our recent blog post “The No. 1 Thing You Can Do to Prevent Tax Identity Theft.”
- Consider contacting the Social Security Administration to request your wage report to ensure an identity thief hasn’t reported fraudulent wages. If you have yet to set up your online Social Security Account, read our blog about three reasons why you should.
- If you see any fraudulent activity on your credit report, contact your identity theft restoration service immediately so a certified restoration specialist can open an inquiry and resolve the identity theft. Don’t have a membership yet? No problem — it’s both super affordable and super easy to sign up today.
If your financial account numbers (checking accounts, credit cards, money market funds/stock investment accounts, etc.) were breached
- Close the accounts that have been affected and have the account numbers changed.
- You should keep a close eye on your bank and investment statements. Consider looking at them weekly rather than monthly.
If your medical or auto insurance information was breached
- Keep a close watch on the Explanation of Benefits statements from your health insurance company. Make sure you received every procedure/service your health insurance company was billed for.
- Contact your specific insurance company to find out the details on how they protect policies that have been compromised. If possible, have them change the policy number. And password protect all accounts if you can.
Image: Pixabay