Identity Theft And How a Private Investigator Can Help

by | Sep 5, 2018 | Private Investigator Business, Theft and Fraud

If you live in Pensacola, FL , in Mobile, AL, or in the vicinity and need helpful tips to prevent identity theft, follow this link for the city of Pensacola, FL  or here for the city of Mobile, AL.

But first, what is identity theft? Well, www.consumer.gov defines what it is, and gives us the scope on why to act and how to act if you are suspicious of that this is happening to you. As they

stated, “Identity theft is a serious crime. Identity theft happens when someone uses information about you without your permission.”

This is serious because they are acting on your behalf, in a sense, and whatever they do, good OR bad can cause repercussions and be pinned on you. A real example of this is that someone obtains a credit card with your information and buys things but does not pay the bills. Essentially, they could impersonate you. In the end, the person who is buying them looks like it is you even when it isn’t and that could affect your status with the credit card company.

Now that we know that it is serious, we can look at what to do about it and how to stay vigilant. The county sheriffs office will offer helpful tips for avoiding identity theft and below is a list from www.identitytheft.gov on some signs to watch for if you suspect your identity has been stolen:

  • You see bank transactions that you can’t explain (withdrawals, for example)
  • Unrecognized changes to your credit report
  • Bills for services you didn’t use (such as medical or others bills)
  • Your medical plan information changes (you may see that you are identified with a condition/illness that you do not have)
  • Accounts opened in your name that you did not open
  • The IRS notifies you of re-filing or other tax information changes

The above list refers to what someone else might do to you but they could also try to steal your children’s identity. That is another kind of identity theft and below are a list of some common kinds of identity theft:

  • Tax ID Theft
  • Child ID Theft
  • Medical ID Theft
  • Social ID Theft
  • Senior ID Theft

This list was taken from the United States Government Website which has more details and information for reporting theft.

The above tips should help you keep an eye on what is going on around you, but in the unfortunate case that this happens to you, would you consider hiring a private investigator? A private detective, or investigator, may be able to help by locating key information for your case, but they may also be able to find who committed identity theft and track them down. Although the outcomes of these cases aren’t necessarily predictable, private investigators can give you personalized attention. Baldwin Legal Investigations has qualified investigators that can provide personal attention to your case. The sooner action is taken, the sooner a conclusion can be reached.

Thinking about contacting Baldwin Legal Investigations? Look here.