5 Ways to Determine If Your Identity has been Stolen

As we use the Internet every day, we feel comfortable sharing a lot of information online. But cybercriminals want us to feel safe so they can take our personal or financial data and use it for their gain. This is called identity theft, and it can harm people and lower their credit scores. In 2022 alone, more than 5.2 million Americans were victims of theft and fraud, including millions who did not report it. Fortunately, knowing the signs of identity theft and acting quickly by using KYC identity verification can help reduce the number of incidents.

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How To Know If Your Identity Has Been Stolen?

To steal your identity and to target you Identity thieves use many tricks. This list covers the most common warning signs to tell if your identity has been stolen.

1. Lost or stolen documents and ID

You should always know where your ID and debit/credit cards are located. If any of the following items are lost or stolen, you are at risk of identity theft: Some of the important documents are passport, social security number, driver’s license, credit or debit card, etc.  Don’t use your Social Security card in your wallet. At the top of an identity thief’s list is a Social Security number, so don’t let it fall into the wrong hands. SSN is used for identity verification. So if you lose any of the documents, you should report them to authorities to stop being used in crimes. 

2. Errors or different accounts on your credit report

One of the first places you’ll notice warning signs if your identity has been stolen is on your credit report. For instance, if a fraudster utilizes your taken data to open another account or take a loan in your name. Here’s how to check your credit report:

• Check for fake accounts that you don’t recognize or that have unauthorized co-signers
• Lenders ask tough questions before granting credit. If there are any questions you don’t recognize, it could be a scammer using your identity.
• Identity thieves can change the contact information on your credit file to pass through identity verification KYC or so that you are unaware of their actions. Please check the listed address and phone number to ensure they are correct.

3. Unknown SMS verification code

One method of identity verification is enabling Two-factor authentication (2FA).  You will be asked to verify your identity with a unique OTP if you have enabled 2FA for services like Gmail, Amazon, PayPal, and others. But what if you receive a text message with a verification code you didn’t request? This means that an identity thief cracked your password and if you hadn’t used 2FA, your account would have been hacked.

Unfortunately, 2FA creates a security vulnerability via SMS due to a new type of fraud called SIM swapping. So, instead of receiving a 2FA code use an authenticator app like Google Authenticator.

4. There has been a change in your credit score

Changes in your credit score could indicate identity theft. For example, if someone collects a debt on your behalf and you don’t pay, your credit score could drop. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) allows a free credit report every twelve months to US consumers. To keep track of your score you can also pay for a credit monitoring service

5. You’re blocked from your email and other accounts

If your password is not working you can’t log into your account it means your identity has been stolen. The degree of hacking depends on the account accessed by the hackers. For example, many scammers log into social media accounts to trick their followers and you cannot use your identity for identity verification and authentication. If they get access to your bank account, they can steal your money. Here’s what to do if you have a suspended account:

• To begin with, regain your hacked account by resetting a password.
• Once you are back in your account, enable two-factor authentication and use stronger passwords for example, “L3rD0fth7R4ng$”.
• At long last, ensure your backup email address and telephone number are right

What to do if your identity is compromised?

Keeping your identity safe is very important for a biometric identity verification system. If you feel your identity has been stolen then you need to be prepared all the time. You can take a few steps if you notice the warning signs above

• Change login details and passwords
• Close the account with the bank or credit card company or freeze your credit report
• Contact your local law enforcement
• Check your credit report
• Report Social Security fraud
• To report identity theft and find resources to help you develop a recovery plan you can also visit IdentityTheft.gov.

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