What Is Credit Bureau Identity Theft and How to Report It Quickly

Managing credit bureau identity theft can be extremely difficult. Once your credit information is stolen, the thief can take out lines of credit in your name, destroy your credit, and make your financial life very difficult, often for an extended period of time. DoNotPay can make managing credit bureau identity theft easier.

What is Credit Bureau Identity Theft?

Credit bureau identity theft occurs when someone steals your private identifying information and uses it to take out a line of credit. Opening a line of credit in your name allows the thief to avoid the consequences of their own poor past financial decisions or to steal money from the entity that provides that line of credit. Unfortunately, in many cases, it also leaves you responsible for those funds.

The major credit bureaus, including Equifax and Experian, will take several vital steps to help you manage the aftermath of identity theft. Unfortunately, in some cases, that may involve substantial difficulty for you.

Credit Card Fraud Versus Identity Theft

Credit card fraud and identity theft can go hand in hand but are not usually the same thing.

How to Report Credit Bureau Identity Theft

You may need to follow several steps in reporting your identity theft to the major credit bureaus.

• File a report with your local police.
• Report identity theft to the Federal Trade Commission, or FTC, either by calling 1-877-438-4338 or online at IdentityTheft.gov.
• Check your Equifax credit report at my Equifax and report fraud through your online account.
• Visit Experian's online Fraud Center to report identity theft through Experian.

At each step in the process, you may find yourself weaving through a complex set of online forms, putting in the same information over and over again. Worse, if you make a mistake in the online process, you may end up having to make a call to take care of the identity theft challenge--and that may mean long hold times and wading through levels of representatives before you can achieve a resolution.

What To Do After Your Identity is Stolen

If you discover that your identity has been stolen, it's important to take the right steps to protect yourself! You may need to:

1. Freeze your credit.
2. Monitor your accounts carefully for the foreseeable future. Keep in mind that you may need to act fast if you notice any further fraudulent transactions.
3. Check your existing lines of credit, including your credit scores.

Protecting yourself following identity theft is paramount.

Let DoNotPay Help Manage Your Credit Bureau Identity Theft Challenges

With DoNotPay, managing the challenges that often come along with reporting and managing credit bureau identity theft can be much easier.

1. Search "identity theft" on DoNotPay and select the type of incident you would like to report.
2. Tell us more about the incident that occurred, including the location, date, time, financial loss, and any suspect information you may have.
3. We'll identify whether you should file an FTC report, contact the IRS, freeze your credit report, contact state agencies, or file a police report. Once we guide you through the best options, we'll automatically submit the reports on your behalf!

And that's it. DoNotPay will make sure your issue gets sent to the right place. We'll upload confirmation documents to your task for you to view, and if the contacts need more information, they will reach out to you personally via email or mail.

Why Use DoNotPay to Manage Credit Bureau Identity Theft?

Managing identity theft is challenging. It's often frustrating. It can be a long, slow process to get your identity back in your own hands. DoNotPay can make it easier.

DoNotPay is fast, easy, and convenient. It's also highly accurate and can provide access to trustworthy, reliable information about your next steps or how you can protect yourself following identity theft, which can make it much easier for you to navigate those challenges.

DoNotPay Can Help With Many of the Challenges That Go Along With Identity Theft

DoNotPay isn't just for helping you manage your identity theft challenges with the key credit bureaus. It can also help you in other ways.

• Learn more about how to report identity theft (and who you may need to report it to).
• Handle reporting IRS identity theft.
• Discover what to do when someone files for unemployment in your child's name.
• Manage credit card fraud committed against your child.
• Handle Social Security identity theft.
• Determine what to do when someone steals your stimulus check.
• Learn how much you can sue for after identity theft.

If you have suffered identity theft, don't get stuck handling it on your own--and dealing with the rising stress levels that go along with it. Check out DoNotPay today to learn how you can handle credit bureau reports and identity theft more easily.