What does it feel like to have your identity stolen?

In many ways, this crime – which the Franklins missed coming, and needed someone else to point out after the fact – felt no different than the identity theft. read more

Identity theft is the fastest growing white collar crime in the world, and hackers and identity thieves are starting to pop up all over the world, from Eastern Europe to Africa. If you suspect that your identity has been stolen or you know someone who has been affected, this is who you should contact to help you resolve the situation now and in the future. read more

Franklin, whose name has been changed in this story, is one of the tens of millions of Americans whose identities were stolen in recent years. Roughly 12.7 million US consumers were victims of some kind of identity fraud last year, according to Javelin Strategy & Research, a business research firm. read more

Once you have determined the extent of the problem, your next step may be to file a report with the Federal Trade Commission. Peters says this is only necessary if you think your identity has in fact been stolen. For credit card fraud, in which only a single account was compromised, an FTC report isn’t warranted. read more