Identity theft doesn’t discriminate, and can affect even the most careful and conscious of people. With the advent of online shopping and banking — and factors beyond our control like data breaches — our addresses, Social Security numbers and health information could be floating around the web without our knowledge.
It’s crucial to understand the steps to take and how to react quickly if your information is compromised, as well as how to remain vigilant in the future.
According to McAfee’s A Guide to Identity Theft Statistics for 2025, more 15 million Americans experience identity theft per year, and approximately $52 billion was stolen by bad actors in 2024. These numbers are staggering, but they show us that identity theft is a widespread problem.
Like the 15 million Americans per year, I fell victim to identity theft. Although I never received confirmation that my personal information was misused, I knew it had been leaked, and the feelings of panic and helplessness were overwhelming.
But identity theft is not the end. It can be resolved, and with informed and timely action, recovery is possible. Below are the steps I took to maximize my chance of recovery and proactively protect my information for the future.
[RelatedEquifax Ordered to Pay $15 Million: Here’s What Consumers Should Know]
1. Stay Calm
Identity theft is a serious crime, and typically involves a criminal obtaining and using someone else’s personal information without their consent. This information can be used for a variety of purposes, including committing fraud, opening new accounts, making unauthorized purchases, filing taxes or doing anything else in the victim’s name.
The repercussions of identity theft for the victim can be both psychologically and financially damaging. Destroyed credit scores and depleted accounts are usually catalysts for significant stress and lost time.
With all of this said, identity theft is resolvable, and you can maximize your chances by staying calm. Acting quickly and wisely can determine whether your case is straightforward or painfully drawn out. Many people have successfully navigated the recovery process and come out the other side; you can too.
Another thing to note is that blame and guilt have very little place at this point in the process. It doesn’t matter how the information was stolen; the more important bit is which steps you take next. The focus should be on resolving the issue and learning how to protect yourself better moving forward.
2. Document Everything
As you begin your identity recovery journey, please remember to keep meticulous records of every step related to your case. Every email about fraudulent transactions, communication with law enforcement, confirmations of fraud alerts and billing statements is equally essential. So, if you called Todd from Equifax at 10:30 a.m. yesterday, be sure to note their name, your case number, their advice and any other important details.
Being able to quickly refer to billing statements with fraudulent charges or easily referencing a fraud affidavit can make the process that much easier.
3. Start Calling
If you even suspect suspicious activity, immediately call the companies where you think the fraud occurred. This can be the fraud or security departments of your bank, a retailer or your health care provider.
In my case, I called my bank and immediately requested to change my logins and passwords to the relevant accounts. Most banks offer 24/7 call service and have specific lines for suspicious activity or lost or stolen cards.
Depending on your individual situation, the next step is to immediately place a credit freeze and/or fraud alert on your credit reports.
[Related:What Is a Credit Report?]
A credit freeze is the more drastic of the two actions. It is free to place, and essentially restricts access to your credit reports and the ability to open new accounts. Lenders and creditors cannot access your credit when you have a freeze on it, so this means that whenever you are applying for credit (i.e., when you apply for a job or wish to switch to a new utility service), you will need to remove the security freeze to allow for a credit check.
You can request a credit freeze on your credit report by mail or phone. To be best prepared, have the following information on hand (which will depend on whether you call or mail): your full name and date of birth, your Social Security number, addresses where you have lived in the past five years, proof of current address, a photocopied government issued piece of identification and either a Social Security card, pay stub or W2 form.
A written confirmation will arrive if the freeze is placed successfully, and they usually will provide you with important information on how to unfreeze your credit when the time comes.
A fraud alert is also free and ensures that creditors complete extra steps to verify your identity before opening new accounts in your name or completing similar transactions. It does not completely restrict these actions like a freeze does.
You only need to contact one of the three credit bureaus to place a one-year fraud alert. An extended fraud alert lasts for seven years and offers more protections but requires more documentation and verification processes.
You are eligible to receive free copies of your credit report from TransUnion, Experian and Equifax, and you can check weekly for free at AnnualCreditReport.com. You can specifically ask that only the last four digits of your Social Security number be displayed on your reports for additional protection.
It is worthwhile to know that contacting a credit bureau by phone can be a stressful experience for those experiencing identity theft. You should expect multiple-choice security questions when you call, which may include pretty exacting details about a family member’s previous addresses or middle name. Think before you answer, and remain patient with the professionals on the other end of the line.
[Related:Your Guide to the Big 3 Credit Bureaus]
4. Report, Report, Report
Once that part of identity theft triage is complete, reporting to the Federal Trade Commission and your local police department is a helpful step.
When you report your situation, the FTC will not individually look into your case, nor does it have the authority to bring criminal cases, but it will file your report into the federal identity theft data clearinghouse, which helps aid law enforcement. When completing a report online, the IdentityTheft.gov website can also pre-fill forms and letters for you and walk you through recovery steps.
For victims of identity theft, an optional next step is to file a report with your local police department. This requires a pre-filled FTC Identity Theft Report, a government-issued photo ID, proof of address and any evidence of the theft. I personally did not complete this step, but it is by no means unimportant; by visiting local police you can provide an official police report as proof of identity theft, and there is greater opportunity for further investigation by law enforcement.
5. Fix Damage
Now that you have a freeze or fraud alert on, you are exponentially safer from the thieves who stole your information previously. But now it is time to manage the damage already done.
Luckily, my journey through identity theft recovery ended before this point, but for many victims, fraudulent charges and accounts and incorrect credit reports need to be mediated before being out of the identity theft doghouse.
If new accounts were opened with your information, with your official FTC Identity Theft Report in hand, call the security or fraud department of each place where a new account was created. Request a letter from the business in question, confirming that the fraudulent account is not yours and that you are not liable for it. Also, ensure the account has been removed from your credit report.
If no new accounts were opened but you detected fraudulent charges, call the security or fraud department of each place where you see incorrect charges. Request that the charges be removed, and again, here you can use your FTC Identity Theft Report to back you up.
To correct your credit report, you can remove the incorrect information in a process called “blocking.” You must write to TransUnion, Experian and Equifax individually, including a copy of the FTC Identity Theft Report and copies of proof of your identity in the envelope, and point out which information on your report is fraudulent. You can then ask them to block this information; from then on, blocked information will not appear on your credit report, nor can companies collect that debt from you.
Additional steps like replacing government-issued IDs, clearing criminal charges or contacting a student loan office vary on a case-by-case basis. Once the immediate issues are resolved, learning how to safeguard your personal information in the future is one of the most important things you can do.
6. Breathe … and Stay Vigilant
After the entire ordeal, I have successfully resolved my identity theft and chosen to keep my credit frozen indefinitely.
Depending on your lifestyle, this might not be as feasible for you as freezing and refreezing can be a hassle. But for my personal purposes, keeping my credit frozen is like locking a car door: if I have the opportunity to add an extra layer of protection easily, why wouldn’t I? Even if it comes with a small inconvenience.
Besides freezing and monitoring your credit on a regular basis, there are many other ways to stay safe and wary of identity theft in everyday life. I have changed my important passwords to strong, unique combinations and enabled two-factor authentication on applications and websites that offer it. Your Google account and phone likely have password managers that you can utilize to access these logins and keep them all straight.
Additionally, try not to share any personal information online or over the phone if you can help it, and always ask if there is an alternative, like voice verification. Check that websites you are sharing information with are .gov sites, or the official sources, and do not share this information over public Wi-Fi without a proper VPN. In that vein, it is wise to download anti-virus software from known sources and keep your operating system updated.
As they say in every job training video, please don’t click on suspicious links or emails, and don’t download unfamiliar applications. Even if they come from a familiar sender, it is always wiser to check. The same goes for phone calls from unknown numbers.
Though I am not a homeowner, for those who are, it is also important to make sure that your mail is retrieved from the mailbox in a timely manner. You can arrange to have your email forwarded when you are away, or purchase a mailbox with a locking mechanism to stay extra protected.
More from U.S. News
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5 Signs of Fraud that Could Show Up on Your Credit Report — and How to Fix Them
I Got Scammed: 6 Takeaways From How I Survived and Resolved Identity Theft originally appeared on usnews.com
