What to do When You Find Yourself the Victim of Fraud
Any person or business can become a victim of fraud. Fraud can take many forms from identity theft to embezzlement of funds. Fraud can cause financial and personal problems for a long time. It can be difficult to detect and to prosecute. Anyone who has become a victim of fraud should take several steps right away.
Freeze Affected Accounts
The first step should be to immediately call all banks and credit card companies to freeze affected accounts. The banks should be notified about the fraud so that precautions can be taken in the future. Calls should be made to all three major credit-reporting agencies. The agencies can place a fraud alert on the account so that no information is given out.
Report the Fraud to Authorities
The next step should be to contact all appropriate authorities to report the fraud. Fraud that occurred online, through the mail or over the phone is handled by federal agencies. Police should be called about local cases of fraud. This will start a criminal investigation to find and prosecute the perpetrator. Involving authorities will, hopefully, help prevent any future victims from being affected.
Hire an Attorney Experienced In Litigation
It is important to hire an attorney with experience in litigation and cases of fraud. An attorney acts as an advocate. A commercial litigation attorney can help business owners to reclaim losses due to fraud. This sometimes includes punitive damages and other fees associated with the fraud. Victims of fraud should look for attorneys who are litigators. This will make it easier to aggressively pursue compensation from the criminal. Depending on your bank’s policy and the circumstances of the fraud, you may need the attorney to get your funds returned.
Get New Identification and Bankcards
If the fraud involved any type of identity theft, then it is important to have new identification and bankcards issued. A new driver’s license will have a different official number. New credit or debit cards will also have different numbers. This prevents anyone who might have gotten hold of the information from using the same data to continue the fraudulent activities. If you find someone took your social security number, contact the social security office to see what can be done.
Change All Vulnerable Passwords
Another step after becoming a victim of fraud is to change any passwords that could have been revealed or that are associated with finances. This should include passwords to online accounts and pin numbers. A criminal could have easily gained access to this data with stolen personal information. While it can be difficult to remember passwords, try not to have the same password for everything.
Recovering from fraud can take some time. It will be necessary to check credit reports regularly and fix any fraudulent entries that appear. Personal documents should be protected or shredded when no longer needed. Passwords should be changed regularly. These simple steps can help to prevent an individual from becoming a victim of fraud again in the future.
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Category: Identity Theft
