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I woke up this morning to find both my Gmail account and my personal email (on my own domain) filled with some interesting emails. Someone tried to buy a BMW and apply for a loan for a Mercedes in my name, both at local dealerships. They also signed me up for accounts on Onlyfans, a few online sex shops, and Soho House, which is some kind of private club chain. I did all that I could do on a Sunday: I used Experian to add a fraud alert to my credit reports, changed my email password, and emailed the places where the accounts were made in the hopes of turning something up. This is some weird poo poo. I can't find any fraudulent charges on my cards. Moreover I don't understand the purpose of making the sex shop and Onlyfans accounts. I don't have a receipt here so it doesn't look like they bought anything in my name. I closed the onlyfans account through a password reset. I discovered that they had used my full legal name. There's only one way I can think that they'd get my full name and both of my emails: a job application, I've been applying for jobs this year and a few had both emails listed. Is there anything I should do beyond what I'm doing? I thought about filing a police report but what the hell can local police do about this? And what the hell is really going on here?
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Jan 11, 2021 00:26
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| # ? Apr 29, 2024 15:00 |
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Sorry to hear that, that sucks. Yes, go ahead and file a police report. They won't actually be able to do anything, but be sure to request a copy of the report. To add to the annoyance, even though it's your 'own' report, you'll probably have to file a FOIA request a few days after they down your statement to actually get a copy of the report. But they should walk you through all that, and it's not really too hard. Just some forms to fill out. In case the criminals open any credit cards, cell phone accounts, etc., you might need a copy of an official police report to get the account actually canceled. It's crazy, but better to have the paperwork already in hand. Then, also file an identity theft report with the FTC https://www.identitytheft.gov/ - you can do this online in about 15 minutes. That's another 'official step' you should take in case any serious damage occurs. Again, hopefully nothing truly damaging will happen, but it's better to have this stuff lined up just in case. Finally, make sure to keep a very close eye on your credit reports for the next several months (and also forever onwards, because it's just good practice). If you notice any new, fraudulently opened accounts, contact that company as soon as possible to have it canceled.
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Jan 11, 2021 06:07
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On the topic of getting credit reports - if you're going to monitor them regularly, you get 1 free per year from each of the 3 major bureaus. Don't get them all at once, instead, get 1 every 4 months. Alternatively, your bank or credit union may give you free access to one or more reports on a monthly basis depending, it may be worth looking into that. Normally I'd suggest Credit Karma as an alternative, but they were just acquired by Intuit (TurboTax) - it remains to be seen what's going to happen with them, but I'm not a huge fan of that transaction.
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Jan 13, 2021 08:44
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I had my identity stolen in the past and several credit cards, store cards and phone contracts etc were taken out. I notified the police and their answer was, literally, "Sorry, the victims here are those companies, not you". I couldn't even close down those accounts myself because I couldn't pass security on them when I called the companies. Eventually, contacting credit agencies was fruitful. In the UK (not sure about elsewhere) we have three of them: Experian, Equifax and Call Credit Check. I contacted each of them and explained the situation and they then worked with the companies to remove those accounts from my name. It was a hassle but they were definitely helpful and they removed the fraudulent accounts within three or four months E; Oh god this is an old thread but was on page 2 - sorry!
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Aug 3, 2021 20:25
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