Prevent Identity Theft
Annotated Listing of Resources at the Library & on the Web

Books | General Web Sites | Credit Reports

Books

Identity Theft: How to Protect Your Name, Your Credit, and Your Vital Information
[364.16 Id]
Prevent identity theft by learning how criminals steal sensitive information.

Identity Theft Toolkit: How to Recover From and Avoid Identity Theft
by John Lenardon [364.16 Le]
Protect your identity from theft and fight back if it has been stolen. This book contains a test to determine your risk for having your identity stolen, sample forms and letters to help deal with credit and law enforcement agencies, as well as important contact numbers.

Preventing Identity Theft for Dummies
Michael J. Arata [364.16 Ar]
Straightforward advice on understanding identity theft, minimizing risk, reviewing a credit report, and charting a course of action if you are a victim of identity theft.

The Rational Guide to Preventing Identity Theft
Ledford, Jerry [364.16 Le]
Learn the best ways to protect yourself agianst identity theft, how to tell if you've been victimized, and what to do if you are a victim of identity theft.

Stealing your Life: The ultimate identity theft prevention plan
Frank W. Abagnale [364.16 Ab]
The author of the bestselling memoir Catch Me If You Can exposes the astonishing tactics of today's identity theft criminals and offers strategies to stop them based on his second career as an acclaimed fraud-fighting consultant.

The Wall Street Journal Complete Identity Theft Guidebook
by Terri Cullen [382.88 Cu]
Award-winning personal finance columnist Terri Cullen shows readers how to protect themselves from one of the easiest crimes to commit and one of the hardest crimes to prosecute.

Web Sites

General

Federal Trade Commission: Your National Resource about Identity Theft
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/idtheft/
Learn how to deter, detect, and defend against identity theft.

Identity Theft Resource Center
http://www.idtheftcenter.org/
A national nonprofit organization that provides advice and support for consumers and victims of identity theft.

Privacy Rights Clearinghouse
http://www.privacyrights.org/identity.htm
Contains identity theft resources written and compiled by a national nonprofit organization.

US Department of Justice: Identity Theft and Fraud
http://www.usdoj.gov/criminal/fraud/websites/idtheft.html
Learn what you can do to prevent identity theft and what you should do if you think you area victim of identity theft.

Credit Reports

• To request a free credit report from the following Web resources, you will need to have an e-mail address. If you would like to sign up for a free e-mail account, click here.

AnnualCreditReport.com
https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp
This central site allows you to request a free credit report once every 12 months from each of the nationwide consumer credit report companies: Equifax, Experian, and Transunion. Call toll free 1-877-322-8228 to request your free credit report by phone.

The web addresses to the three major consumer credit companies are as follows. These sites also offer additional information about identity theft.
Remember, go to www.annualcreditreport.com to order your free credit report.

Equifax
http://www.equifax.com/
Call 1-800-685-1111 to order a credit report.
Call 1-888-766-0008 to report fraud.
In order to dispute a credit report by phone, you must have an Experian credit report. The number to call is listed on the report.

Experian
http://www.experian.com/
Call 888-397-3742 to order your credit report or credit score, dispute your credit report, or report fraud/identity theft.

Transunion
http://www.transunion.com/index.jsp
Call 1-877-322-8228 (Annualcreditreport.com) to order your credit report.
Call 1-800-916-8800 to dispute your credit report.
Call 1-800-680-7289 to report fraud.

Free Annual Credit Reports: What Consumers Should Know
http://www.michigan.gov/ag/0,1607,7-164-17334_17362_34675---,00.html
Michigan's Attorney General gives consumers helpful hints when ordering their free annual credit report.

OptOutPrescreen.com
http://www.optoutprescreen.com/
Official Consumer Credit Reporting Industry web site to accept and process requests from consumers to "Opt-In" or "Opt-Out" of offers of credit or insurance. Choosing to "Opt-Out" prevents consumer credit reporting companies from providing your credit file information for firm offers of credit or insurance that are not initiated by you. To submit your request to "Opt-Out" by phone, call 1-888-567-8688.

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