Check out the 4 signs you can spot whether you have been a victim of identity theft.

1. Signs You Are
Dealing With An
4
Identity Fraud

2. By definition, “identity theft” occurs when someone steals your identity whereas
“identity fraud” occurs when that person uses your identity to commit fraud or
deceive someone.
There are many ways in which identity
theft can occur such as
By Phishing Stealing Credit CardsBy Use Of Malware
Once this information falls into the notorious hands of the fraudster, he is now well
equipped to commit the crime.
Secretly Sneaking
Over Your Personal
Information.

3. What kind of crimes can be committed once thieves get hold of your personal
information?
Your Personal information can be
used to
Your credit card can be used to make unauthorized purchases.
These crimes can affect your credit scores too.
Apply for an IT return
Apply for a credit card
or a loan.
Open a new bank
account
Here are 4 giveaways to indicate that someone has stolen your
information.

4. YOUR ACCOUNT STATEMENT LOOKS SUSPICIOUS OR YOUR
CHECKS BOUNCE
When checking your
account statement, even a
small discrepancy should
raise an alarm.
Check for unknown
withdrawals, deductions or
payments.
1
You may have become a
victim of financial Identity
Fraud.

5. SAFETY MEASURES:
Be aware of your
spending, subscriptions,
and purchases.
Make an excel sheet and
note down them with
their amount.
Get your bank KYC
done by completing PAN
Verification and other
Identity Verification
procedures.
If you suspect
unapproved access to
your bank account, then
open a new one with a
new account number
and update account
information.
Keep a regular check on
your accounts for any
suspicious or unfamiliar
activity & immediately
contact your bank in case
you smell a fraud.

6. YOU DETECT SOME DUBIOUS ACTIVITY FROM YOUR CREDIT CARD
OR YOUR CREDIT REPORT DOESN’T LOOK RIGHT
Another sign is that the
suspicious activity on
your credit card
statement.
2
You may see a small
but unknown amount
deduction on your
credit card statement.
This could be a ‘check
trap’ by the fraudster
to see whether you are
vigilant enough to file
a fraudulent charge.
If you ignore it, the
fraudster will go
ahead with a bigger
withdrawal.

7. SAFETY MEASURES:
If you notice
fraudulent purchases
using your credit card,
contact the merchant
& card issuer to alert
them and ask them to
immediately block the
account.
Contact any credit
information company
to place a fraud alert
or a credit freeze on
your credit report,
which prevents
identity thieves to
open accounts in your
name.
The credit
reporting agency
informs about the
fraud to the other
agencies.
Always keep an
eye on your credit
score and credit
reports for signs of
any unauthorized
activity.

8. DEBT COLLECTORS START CALLING YOU OUT OF THE BLUE
If you receive even a single call from creditors
asking you to pay the unpaid bills that you don’t
even recognize, it is possible that someone has
stolen your personal information and is now
buying credit under your name.
3
Check your credit report for
unfamiliar accounts.

9. SAFETY MEASURES:
If you are a victim, you’ll need to contact
the merchant or service provider where
the fraudulent account was opened &
close that account immediately.
Inform the credit reporting agencies
about the fraud so that it does not affect
your credit score.

10. YOU’RE UNABLE TO FILE TAXES
Identity thieves may file taxes using
your personal details to route your tax
refunds into their accounts. This would
inhibit your ability to pay taxes.
3
Contact the local police and
the federal trade commission
SAFETY MEASURES:

11. You can get both your personal credit score and
business credit score by applying directly on the link
mentioned below:
https://cir.crifhighmark.com
Follow CRIF India on :
/CRIF INDIA