Identity Theft

As an identity theft attorney in NY I wanted to talk to you a little bit about the dangers of identity theft. As our society becomes more and more technologically advanced privacy becomes more and more of a concern. While using information like our social security numbers for drivers license numbers and simple identification purposes was commonplace as little as 15 years ago, now it is becoming extremely rare. The reason for this is that the convenience of living in a technologically advanced world comes with a much darker convenience—convenience for identity thieves. And these thieves, unlike their common thief predecessors, can substantially affect our credit and our lives without us even knowing about it until serious damage has been done.

 

What is Identity Theft?

According to the New York Attorney General’s Officeidentity theft is “the unlawful use of an individual’s personal identification information.” Thieves steal information like your name, social security number and financial information in order to establish credit that they themselves can use, in order to make purchases, or in some cases even to secure jobs. The most common type of identity theft is credit-card theft, in which thieves steal your credit-card information in order to make purchases. In these sorts of cases you will want to get the police involved so that the thief can be criminally prosecuted. But punishing the thief is not the only concern. Identity theft can have significant and long-term effects on your credit and financial well-being if it is not properly dealt with, which is why you will need your own advocate.

 

Why You Need An Identity Theft Attorney 

While the police can help you find the thief and prosecutors can help insure that the identity thief is punished, an identity theft attorney can help you undo the damage. Laws such as the Electronic Fund Transfer Act and Fair Credit Billing Act give you the right to dispute fraudulent charges on your checking account register or credit card bill and to have the fraudulent charges removed – but you must be careful to follow the procedures set by those laws, and you must act quickly after the fraudulent charges appear on your bill. We can also use laws like the Fair Credit Reporting Act to undo the damage the thief may have caused by opening fraudulent accounts in your name. We can also use provisions of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to prevent debt collectors from coming after you for debts created by the thief.

 

NYS Security Freeze

We can also help you become familiar with a state law that creates something called “NYS Security Freeze.” This law allows you to place a security freeze on your credit report. We can help you work through the process to make this happen. While taking advantage of this program may slow down your own ability to obtain credit because of the extra hoops involved in doing things that can affect your credit report, it can be a real life saver if you are the victim of ongoing identity theft. It can prevent future damage to your credit if your identity was stolen by more than one individual, for example.

 

Call the New York Identity Theft Attorneys at The Bromberg Law Office

When you are a victim of identity theft, trying to undo the damage can be more than one person can do alone. That is why you need the experience and help of a New York identity theft attorney. The Bromberg Law Office can help. We have handled situations like yours before and we can take some of the pain out of putting the pieces back together.

Call us today at (212)248-7906 or fill out the form below.