Okay, here's what happened...
DH called that collection agency that called my mom yesterday looking for him. Turns out, some dude in Florida got DH's ssn, opened a credit card with 'DH' as the co-signer, paid his bills but then stopped as of February. So then they came after DH cuz he 'co-signed'. Uh...no he didn't... So the collection agency was then like 'oh, yeah, i guess that's not you'. Now DH has to go the police, which he did after work. But they need all the statements and what not from the original credit card company before he can file a report. Fine. So he comes home, calls the credit card company and they say 'oh, we turned all that stuff over to the collection agency, call them'. So he calls the collection agency and they're like 'oh, you have to mail us a certified letter asking for x, y and z and then we'll give it to you'. Then, when he gets all of that info he has to go *back* to the police and also file a report with the FTC (Federal Trade Commission). Although i think the FTC bit is just something he wants to do...i'm not sure...
SERIOUSLY?! We're the ones getting screwed and *WE* have to jump thru hoops?!
Well, we're gonna.
We also just signed up for Life Lock so nothing like this happens ever again. But something i didn't know is that you can't sign up for Life Lock *until* you've been victimized! I thought you'd at least be able to sign up as a precaution.
Whew! ![]()
Re: Life Lock is *ON*!
That's crazy $hit! You can't even imagine how many people have access to your SS# on a daily basis and how easy it is to obtain. They seem to finally be doing away with using SS#'s on health ins. cards, but unfortunately your SS# is plastered all over other documents. And how many times have you been asked for your SS# throughout life? Tons! And just think for every person you gave your info to, how many people (companies etc.) they've passed it onto. It's crazy. Just try not to give out your SS# too often. Another example is going to the bank and not knowing your bank acct#, they usually ask for your SS# and meanwhile you're yelling it out for the whole bank to hear. I've seen that happen quite a few times...not a good idea.
Enough of my rambling. I hope your DH gets everything all straightened out and has no more problems with this in the future.
Bubblegum Explosion
DH has been racking his brains to think of when something like this could have happened, but i think it could have been any time! A few months ago i was receiving ProActiv that i never ordered. Then my bank called and asked if i was trying to spend ~$300 at a Bed, Bath and Beyond in NJ...um...no, i wasn't. So they nipped that one in the bud.
It's just so completely frustrating and creepy at the same time! I don't want to be paranoid but i will if i have to!
Phreerose - Life Lock is a service that you sign up and pay for and they alert you if anything seems suspicious, especially if new accounts get opened in your name. And then it gets stopped. It's $10 per person per month.
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