Identity Theft = Blacklisted Name: Protect Yourself from Pretexting Scams
John Doe’s identity got stolen. In his name the thief piles up huge amounts of credits. Then comes the bill. Shocked, John Doe calls the creditor asking for an explanation. Creditor politely complies. John Doe explains the improbability of such transactions. Creditor redirects John Doe to the company’s legal department. Credit Company sues John Doe. John Doe pays. John Doe tries to recover.
Recovery from identity theft is a long road, especially when pesky creditors harass already-proven victims to pay up.
The hardest part of recovery however, is restoring a person’s name. Most, if not all, identity theft victims are subject to being blacklisted. Creating new bank accounts using a blacklisted name will be hard, if not impossible. And it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that a person with no bank account is at an extreme disadvantage and will be in dire straits if he or she is not already.
Getting a name off the blacklist is a lengthy but necessary process. While paying creditors the amount due will help (even if it wasn’t your transaction at all), it is not enough. A person needs to go through legal channels to get the taint from his or her name erased. There is just no other way. Like mentioned earlier, it’s a tedious but necessary process.
Identity theft is becoming increasingly dangerous. You can protect yourself against pretexting by not giving out personal information over the phone. Know the law and avoid pretexting schemes by going straight to the source to deal with financial matters. Turn in culprits you suspect of pretexting.
Trilegiant’s Privacy Guard can protect you from identity theft.
