While you can't prevent identity fraud, you can be proactive to help protect yourself. Identity theft is when your personal information is stolen in order to take over or open new accounts, file fake tax returns, rent or buy properties, or do other criminal activities in your name.

How identity theft happens

There are a lot of ways identity theft can happen to you. Hackers may get your information from a data security breach. 

Or, you may unknowingly provide it on social media, during conversions others can hear or by leaving financial documents in unsafe places. That information may include:

• Social Security number
• Full name, address and birth date
• Credit card or bank account numbers
• Car insurance or medical insurance account numbers

How Identity Protection can help:

• Credit, bank & utility account freezes
• Bureau credit monitoring
• Data breach notifications
• 401K investment account activity alerts
• Dark web monitoring
• and more...

A significant majority of identity theft victims who had accounts opened in their name did not find out from their bank or credit card company.
You've probably heard about—or have experienced — thieves stealing credit card numbers or money from a bank account. 

To help catch this kind of identity theft, here are some steps you can take.

• Set up account alerts with your bank and credit card companies.
• Regularly scan your credit card and bank statements.
• Monitor your credit reports from the major bureaus (Experian, Equifax, TransUnion).
• Watch for unfamiliar charges, bills, or communications from debt collectors.
• Use credit monitoring services if possible.

Identity theft has become increasingly common in recent years. It is important to be aware of common scams and to take steps to protect your identity.

Criminal identity theft
Happens when someone commits a crime and gives the police false identifying information.

Medical identity theft
When a thief steals a health insurance card and gets medical care or prescription drugs.

Tax identity theft
When someone files a tax return in your name and takes your refund.