Identity Theft, Even After You Die
Identity theft is compounding family's grief by con artists digging up identities of the deceased. The identity of someone who has died becomes a more irresistible target to thieves and helps buy them some time before they are likely to get caught.
The scam artists search the obituaries where they can find valuable information to give them a jump start at identity theft. Lengthy obituary and death notices will give the crooks more valuable information that they can use to do more damage.
Although the deceased don't have to be concerned with keeping their credit rating good, the emotional burden of the crimes can cause undue stress on the family.
But the spouse of a deceased person can have serious problems if the accounts affected are joint accounts.
Sometimes these scammers are not out to take the money and run. They want someone else's identity for the long term to escape immigration or legal problems.
They assume the identity of a deceased person and could live for years under that name before anyone finds out.
Here are just a few of the many things that you can do to help minimize the possibility of identity theft of a deceased family member.
Toning down the news obituary in the paper would be a good start. Don't give to much information.
Notify all 3 credit reporting agencies (Equifax 888-766-0008, Trans Union 800-680-7289 and Experian 888-397-3742) of the deceased and have them put a "deceased" flag alert on the account.
Contact the Social Security Administration direct and let them know about the death and have them flag the person's social security number as "inactive".
If you find out a deceased relative is involved in any type of fraud or identity theft, notify the police immediately and file a report. This report will be very helpful in dealing with financial institutions and clearing up things later.
You can then call one of the credit reporting agencies and they can give you more guidance about where to go from there.
Dealing with the loss of a loved one can be an emotional experience laden with stress and grief. Taking a few precautions in the beginning can hopefully lead to preventing identity theft of your loved one and keeping their identity their own.
Identity Theft Protection
