Harv's CornerThis is the second of 4 weekly releases. |
Harv's CornerUnitedHealth reveals cyberattack’s vast extent |
In this release I want to remind you about the recent United Healthcare data breach, which has affected an estimated 100 million people—roughly one-third of the U.S. population. While the company has apologized, the potential impact on our personal information remains significant. Following is an article detailing steps you can take to protect yourself in light of this breach. Please review it carefully and take appropriate action to safeguard your data. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to reach out.
Harv
Harv
Hackers made off with Social Security numbers, credit card information, medical histories and more in the February cyberattack on a UnitedHealth Group subsidiary, the company disclosed Thursday.
The Minnetonka-based health care behemoth revealed greater detail on the type of consumer data compromised and a timeline for contacting those affected in a filing to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and a news release.
As many as one-third of all Americans may have had some or all of that data swiped, but a full picture of who was affected and in what way is still not available. The company said it began notifying affected corporate customers Thursday, but it could take until late July for individuals to begin receiving notice.
"While the data review is in its late stages, we continue to provide credit monitoring and identity theft protection to people concerned about their data potentially being impacted," the subsidiary, Change Healthcare, said in a statement.
UnitedHealth — Minnesota's largest company and the nation's largest health insurer — acquired Change Healthcare (CHC) in late 2022. CEO Andrew Witty told Congress in May that the company was upgrading security when the ransomware attack happened.
UnitedHealth paid a $22 million ransom to resolve the hack, which has left a long trail of disruption across the U.S. health care system.
Change Healthcare processes 15 billion health care transactions annually, according to the federal government, and is involved in 1 in 3 patient records. The payment system was shut down after the attack and froze payments to health care organizations around the country, affecting patient access to medications and services.
"To all those impacted, let me be clear: I'm deeply, deeply sorry," Witty said at the congressional grilling.
Thursday's disclosure marks "the next step in the process" toward providing full notice, Change Healthcare said.
The company recommends keeping an eye on bank and credit card statements, medical bills and credit reports, and filing a police report if a crime is suspected.
For now, those affected won't know the nature of their compromised information.
UnitedHealth said it could range from an individual's name or home address to a medical diagnosis to their Social Security or passport numbers — or a combination of data.
"Information that may have been involved was not the same for every impacted individual," Change Healthcare wrote. "To date, we have not yet seen full medical histories appear in the data review."
The updated HIPAA notice said some health care customers will soon be notified that their members or patients were affected in order to direct them toward assistance.
"CHC plans to send direct notice (written letters) at the conclusion of the data review, as required, to affected individuals identified," the filing said. "The mailing process is expected to begin in late July as CHC completes quality assurance procedures."
While a specific number of affected individuals was not disclosed, the company has said it is a "substantial proportion of people in America," amounting to as many as 100 million U.S. residents.
UnitedHealth Group is making free credit and identity monitoring services available for two years; call 1-866-262-5342 or visit tinyurl.com/UHGcredit to enroll.
Brooks Johnson & bull; 612-673-4229
Harv's Corner
You don't have to "believe" in Climate change to "suffer" from it. Please take the time to read the full article . Then watch the video that's posted at the end.
Harv
Billions suffer heat waves fueled by climate change
By SARAH KAPLAN and SCOTT DANCE • Washington Post
Star Tribune June 23, 2004
Dozens of bodies were discovered in Delhi during a two-day stretch this week when even sundown brought no relief from sweltering heat and humidity. Tourists died or went missing as the mercury surged in Greece. Hundreds of pilgrims perished before they could reach Islam's holiest site, struck down by temperatures as high as 125 degrees.
The scorching heat across five continents in recent days, scientists say, provided yet more proof that human caused global warming has so raised the baseline of normal temperatures that once
unthinkable catastrophes have become commonplace.
The suffering came despite predictions that a yearlong surge of global heat might soon begin to wane. Instead, in the past seven days alone, billions felt heat with climate change fueled intensity that broke more than 1,000 temperature records around the globe. Hundreds fell in the United States, where tens of millions of people across the Midwest and Eastern Seaboard have been sweltering amid one of the worst early-season heat waves in memory.
"It should be obvious that dangerous climate change is already upon us," said Michael Wehner, a climate scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. "People will die because of global warming on this very day."
That much of this week's heat unfolded after the dissipation of the El Nino weather pattern — which typically boosts global temperatures — shows how greenhouse gas pollution has pushed the planet into frightening new territory, researchers say. Scientists had expected this summer might be somewhat cooler than 2023, which was the hottest in the Northern Hemisphere in at least 2,000 years.
But with summer 2024 just getting started, there are ominous signs that even more scorching conditions may still be on the horizon.
June is already all but sure to set a 13th-consecutive monthly global average temperature record, said Zeke Hausfather, a climate scientist who works for the payments company Stripe. Next month, he added, the planet could approach or surpass the highest global averages ever measured.
Whether the unyielding trend of record heat will ease soon, with an expected transition from El Nino to its cooler counterpart, La Nina, isn't yet clear, scientists said. Scientists are also still analyzing individual extreme weather events to determine how much climate change influenced them, if at all.
What is obvious: The way humans have caused baseline temperatures to surge.
"We've got the highest greenhouse gas concentrations in the last 3 million years. Carbon dioxide traps heat, so the temperature of the planet is rising," said Michael McPhaden, a senior scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "It's real simple physics."
'Exceptional' heat is arriving sooner and lasting longer
Though not all temperatures seen around the world this week were unprecedented, they were nonetheless evidence of how the climate has shifted in a way that makes hot weather more likely to arrive earlier and last longer.
For some 80% of the world's population — 6.5 billion people — the heat of the past week was twice as likely to occur because humans started burning fossil fuels and releasing greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, according to data provided to the Washington Post by the nonprofit Climate Central.
Nearly half that number experienced what Climate Central considers "exceptional heat" — conditions that would have been rare or even impossible in a world without climate change.
"What is really standing out is how many [heat waves] are happening at the same time," said Andrew Pershing, the nonprofit's director of climate science.
All week long, "exceptional" conditions could be found across much of Africa, the Middle East, southern Europe and southeast Asia. Surging air conditioning demand crippled power grids in Albania and Kuwait. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the past week has seen more than 1,400 high temperature records fall around the globe.
Since the start of the industrial era, human activities — mostly burning fossil fuels — have warmed the planet by about 2 .2 degrees Fahrenheit . Earth's temperature over the past 12 months has been even hotter, averaging about 2 .7 degrees Fahrenheit above preindustrial levels.
To assess how warming increases the likelihood of a given heat event, Climate Central uses multiple global climate models to calculate how often that temperature would have occurred in the preindustrial climate and how frequently it is reached today. The technique, which has been peer reviewed and published in an academic journal, underscores how warming has juiced the chance of temperatures at the edge of what people can tolerate.
The mercury in Hartford, Conn., on Thursday reached 98 degrees Fahrenheit, the highest temperature ever recorded for that day. Climate Central's analysis found those conditions are twice as likely under current levels of warming — and they will only occur more often as the world continues to heat up.
Climate change isn't just making high temperatures and other extreme events more likely, Wehner said. It also makes every disaster that does occur more intense.
Wehner's research has found that heat waves like the one currently unfolding in the United States are now about 3 to 5 degrees Fahrenheit hotter because of how humans have altered the planet. Strong hurricanes are at least 14% wetter because the warmer atmosphere can hold more moisture. And storm surges are unfolding in oceans that are in some places more than a foot higher than they were half a century ago, allowing floodwaters to reach heights never seen before.
"We have been predicting for at least the past two decades that extreme weather would become yet more dangerous as the world warms," Wehner said. "This is not a surprise."
Early summer heat could hint at more global records
The global heat is to be expected after a historically strong El Nino pattern developed this winter and dissipated earlier this month, climate scientists said. The same thing happened in 2016, which had been the hottest year observed since at least the 1850s — until a surge of global heat began breaking those 8-year-old records a year ago.
But this time, eight more years of greenhouse gas emissions warming the planet means the otherwise natural boost in global warmth is pushing the planet even further into uncharted territory, McPhaden said. That is despite the fact that the latest El Nino was "not in the same league" as the supercharged pattern of 2015-2016.
"The impacts of this event were amplified by the warm background conditions," McPhaden said. "What had been an intense El Nino rainfall became an extreme El Nino rainfall."
El Nino, during which unusually warm Pacific waters rise to the surface and transfer vast amounts of heat into the atmosphere, has fingerprints around the globe, including heat across southern and eastern Asia and heavy rainfall in eastern Africa.
Those fingerprints were especially pronounced not because this El Nino pattern was excessively strong, but because it developed in a world where greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise, McPhaden said.
Though El Nino is over, the echo of its warming influence appears increasingly likely to push 2024 average annual temperatures above the record set in 2023, Hausfather said.
For the month of June, global temperatures are likely to be slightly warmer than 2 .7 degrees Fahrenheit above preindustrial levels, Hausfather said.
Last July brought the hottest average global temperatures scientists had ever seen — the hottest, they estimate, in more than 100,000 years. It's possible the planet surpasses that milestone next month, Hausfather said, and it's almost certain to come close to it.
Climate scientists have been predicting the end of El Nino will bring a global cooling trend, but they haven't seen it arrive yet.
"If temperatures stay at current elevated levels, we'd roughly tie last July," Hausfather said. "Either way, it's super hot. It's just a question if, is it hotter than we expected, or not?"
Watch this video! It is a quick view of Trumps agenda regarding climate change mitigation.
Roads turn into rivers in Florida
WASHINGTON POST
How bad does it have to get before we start believing that "Global Warming" is real and that it is imperative that we join the folks trying to mitigate its worst effects? By that, I mean it can get worse . . . a lot worse. We need to pay attention. Who will be leading the country after the election, and what is their plan to tackle this problem?
Disastrous flooding plagued areas between Fort Lauderdale and Miami on Wednesday after nearly a foot of rain fell, transforming roadways into rivers and leaving homes and businesses treading water. It was the wettest summer day on record in Fort Lauderdale, where bookkeeping dates to 1912. The National Weather Service issued a dire flash-flood emergency for "catastrophic" flood effects between Miami Dade and Fort Lauderdale. The episode comes 14 months to the day since an incredible 22.5 inches fell on Hollywood International Airport in Fort Lauderdale in a single day. The historic rainfall bears the fingerprint of human-caused climate change, which is increasing the intensity and severity of top-tier rainstorms. Wednesday's downpours even delayed the Florida Panthers on their way to Stanley Cup games in Canada against the Edmonton Oilers. To make matters worse, the ongoing deluge is far from over.
Hi Everyone,
I want to emphasize the message that Trump poses "A Clear and Present Danger" to Democracy.
It is concerning that millions of people have been led down a path of blind support for him, unable to recognize the danger he represents for the country. The structure of "Trump's" government mirrors the plans outlined in the Heritage Project.
By the way, It's time to recognize the fact that there is no longer a Republican Party. It is the Party of Trump.
In what world would we ever choose this plan for our Country???
Details of the Heritage project;
Project 2025, also known as the Presidential Transition Project, is a collection of right-wing policy proposals from The Heritage Foundation to reshape the U.S. federal government in the event of a Republican victory in the 2024 U.S. presidential election.[2][3]
Established in 2022, the project aims to recruit tens of thousands of conservatives to the District of Columbia to replace existing federal civil servants—whom Republicans characterize as part of the "deep state"—and to further the objectives of the next Republican president.[4]
It adopts a maximalist version of the unitary executive theory, a disputed interpretation of Article II of the Constitution of the United States,[5][6] which asserts that the president has absolute power over the executive branch upon inauguration.[3][7]
Project 2025 envisions widespread changes across the government, particularly economic and social policies and the role of the federal government and its agencies.
The plan proposes slashing funding for the Department of Justice (DOJ), dismantling the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS), sharply reducing environmental and climate change regulations to favor fossil fuel production, eliminating the Department of Commerce, and ending the independence of federal agencies such as the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC).[8][9]
The blueprint seeks to institute tax cuts,[10] though its writers disagree on the wisdom of protectionism.[11] Project 2025 recommends abolishing the Department of Education, whose programs would be either transferred to other agencies, or terminated.[12][13]
Funding for climate research would be cut while the National Institutes of Health (NIH) would be reformed along conservative principles.[14][15]
The Project urges government to explicitly reject abortion as health care[16][17] and eliminate the Affordable Care Act's coverage of emergency contraception.[18]
The Project seeks to infuse the government with elements of Christianity.[19][20] It proposes criminalizing pornography,[21] removing legal protections against discrimination based on sexual or gender identity,[21][22] and terminating diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs,[4][22] as well as affirmative action.[23]
Project contributor Jeffrey Clark advises the future president to immediately deploy the military for domestic law enforcement and direct the DOJ to pursue Donald Trump's adversaries by invoking the Insurrection Act of 1807.[24][25]
The Project recommends the arrest, detention, and deportation of undocumented immigrants.[26] It promotes capital punishment and the speedy "finality" of such sentences.[27] Project director Paul Dans, explained that Project 2025 is "systematically preparing to march into office and bring a new army, aligned, trained, and essentially weaponized conservatives ready to do battle against the deep state."[28][29]
Dans admitted it was "counterintuitive" to recruit so many to join the government to shrink it, but pointed out the need for a future president to "regain control" of the government.[4] Although the project does not promote a specific presidential candidate, many contributors have close ties to Trump and his 2024 campaign.[6][30]
Critics of Project 2025 have described it as an authoritarian Christian nationalist movement[19] and a path for the United States to become an autocracy. Several experts in law have indicated that it would undermine the rule of law and the separation of powers.[8] Some conservatives and Republicans also criticized the plan, for example in the contexts of centralizing power,[4] climate change,[31] and foreign trade.[11]
Harv's Corner
Trump asks Big Oil for $1Billion, vows to undo climate rules
By JOSH DAWSEY and MAXINE JOSELOW • Washington Post
As Donald Trump sat with some of the country's top oil executives at his Mar-a-Lago Club last month, one executive complained about how they continued to face burdensome environmental regulations despite spending $400 million to lobby the Biden administration in the last year.
Trump's response stunned several of the executives in the room overlooking the ocean: You all are wealthy enough, he said, that you should raise $1 billion to return me to the White House. At the dinner, he vowed to immediately reverse dozens of President Biden's environmental rules and policies and stop new ones from being enacted, according to people with knowledge of the meeting, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe a private conversation.
"Giving $1 billion -would be a "deal,"
Trump said, because of the taxation and regulation they would avoid thanks to him, according to the people.
Trump's remarkably blunt and transactional pitch reveals how the former president is targeting the oil industry to finance his re-election bid. At the same time, he has turned to the industry to help shape his environmental agenda for a second term, including the rollbacks of some of Biden's signature achievements on clean energy and electric vehicles.
Could you please spare a moment to consider the implications of the following? The oil industry has pledged a staggering billion-dollar sum in support of Trump's presidential campaign. While this may sound appealing, one should not overlook the fact that this comes at a cost - namely, the future of our planet. The effects of climate change are becoming increasingly severe, and it is imperative that we take action to mitigate them. Do we really want to entrust the fate of our planet to someone who prioritizes profit over the well-being of our environment and our families? It is important to consider these questions carefully before making any decisions. |
The contrast between the two candidates on climate policy could not be more stark. Biden has called global warming an "existential threat," and over the last three years, his administration has finalized 100 new environmental regulations aimed at cutting air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, restricting toxic chemicals and conserving public lands and waters. In comparison, Trump has called climate change a "hoax," and his administration weakened or wiped out more than 125 environmental rules and policies over four years.
In recent months, the Biden administration has raced to overturn Trump's environmental actions and issue new ones before the November election. So far, Biden officials have overturned 27 Trump actions affecting the fossil fuel industry and completed 23 new actions affecting the sector, according to a Washington Post analysis. The Interior Department, for instance, recently blocked future oil drilling across 13 million acres of the Alaskan Arctic.
Despite the oil industry's complaints about Biden's policies, the United States is now producing more oil than any country ever has, pumping nearly 13 million barrels per day on average last year.
ExxonMobil and Chevron, the largest U.S. energy companies, reported their biggest annual profits in a decade last year.
Yet, oil giants will see an even greater windfall — helped by new offshore drilling, speedier permits and other relaxed regulations — in a second Trump administration, the former president told the executives over the dinner of chopped steak at Mar-a-Lago.
Trump vowed at the dinner to immediately end the Biden administration's freeze on permits for new liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports — a top priority for the executives, according to three people present. "You'll get it on the first day," Trump said, according to the recollection of an attendee.
The roughly two dozen executives invited included Mike Sabel, the CEO and founder of Venture Global, and Jack Fusco, the CEO of Cheniere Energy, whose proposed projects would directly benefit from lifting the pause on new LNG exports. Other attendees came from companies including Chevron, Continental Resources, Exxon and Occidental Petroleum, according to an attendance list obtained by the Post.
Trump told the executives that he would start auctioning off more leases for oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, a priority that several of the executives raised. He railed against wind power and said he would reverse the restrictions on drilling in the Alaskan Arctic.
"You've been waiting on a permit for five years; you'll get it on Day 1," Trump told the executives, according to the recollection of the attendee.
At the dinner, Trump also promised that he would scrap Biden's "mandate" on electric vehicles — mischaracterizing ambitious rules that the Environmental Protection Agency recently finalized, according to people who attended. The rules require automakers to reduce emissions from car tailpipes, but they don't mandate a particular technology such as EVs. Trump called them "ridiculous" in the meeting with donors.
The fossil fuel industry has aggressively lobbied against the EPA's tailpipe rules, which could eat into demand for its petroleum products.
The American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers, an industry trade group, has launched a seven-figure campaign against what it calls a de facto "gas car ban." The campaign includes ads in battleground states warning that the rule will restrict consumer choice.
Although the repeal of the EPA rule would benefit the fossil fuel industry, it would probably anger the auto industry, which has invested billions of dollars in the transition away from gasolinepowered cars. Many automakers are under increasing pressure to sell more EVs in Europe, which has tightened its own tailpipe emissions rules, and they are eager to avoid a patchwork of regulations around the globe.
"Automakers need some degree of regulatory certainty from government," said John Bozzella, president and CEO of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which represents Ford, General Motors, Stellantis, Toyota and other car companies.
"What has emerged instead is a wholesale repeal ... and then reinstatement ... and then repeal again of regulations every four or eight years," Bozzella said in an email.
Biden's EV policies have also sparked opposition in rural, Republican-led states such as North Dakota, where there are far more oil pump jacks than charging stations.
A key figure leading the Trump campaign's development of its energy policy is North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, a Republican, who has been talking extensively to oil donors and CEOs. At a fundraiser on Saturday in Palm Beach, Fla., Burgum told donors that Trump would halt Biden's "attack" on fossil fuels, according to a recording of his remarks obtained by the Post.
Burgum also criticized the Biden administration's policies on gas stoves and vehicles with internal combustion engines, falsely claiming that they would prevent consumers from buying both technologies.
While the Energy Department recently set new efficiency standards for gas stoves, they would not affect the stoves in people's kitchens or those currently on the market. The Biden campaign declined to comment for this story.
Burgum has pushed harder to address climate change than many other Republicans, setting a goal in 2021 for North Dakota — the third-largest oil-producing state — to become carbon-neutral by 2030. He has stressed, however, that the goal won't be achieved via government mandates or the elimination of fossil fuels.
Burgum's approach to climate policy makes him an unusual messenger for Trump, who has falsely called global warming a hoax invented by China. But many oil executives view Burgum — a possible contender to lead the Energy Department in a second Trump term — as sympathetic to their concerns, and he has cultivated deep support among oil donors.
Despite Trump's huge fundraising ask, oil donors and their allies have yet to donate hundreds of millions to his campaign. They have contributed more than $6.4 million to Trump's joint fundraising committee in the first three months of this year, according to an analysis by the advocacy group Climate Power. Oil billionaire Harold Hamm and others are scheduling a fundraiser for Trump later this year, advisers said, where they expect large checks to flow to his bid to return to office.
One person involved in the industry said many oil executives wanted Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis or another Republican to challenge Biden. But now that Trump is the nominee, this person said, they are going to embrace his policies and give.
Alex Witt, a senior adviser for oil and gas with Climate Power, said Trump's promise is he will do whatever the oil industry wants if they support him.
With Trump, Witt said, "everything has a price."
Harv's Corner
The discipline of science is one that I hold in high regard, and I believe you share this conviction. Is there a reason for us to reconsider our perspective? Could President Trump's abilities be so exceptional that he can influence the natural elements, defy gravity, or perform miraculous feats? I implore you to approach this matter critically and with vigilance. Let us not be swayed by political oratory, but rather, let us use our expertise to discern the truth. |
![Picture](/uploads/4/9/5/8/49587709/published/download.png?1714938923)
"I'm curious: have you ever encountered someone who habitually promotes false or misleading information? Have you ever known someone who consistently lies to you? If so, do you still welcome that person in your life? The lies that Trump has told regarding global warming could have catastrophic consequences for us all. Ignoring the science behind climate change for the sake of selling fossil fuels is a dangerous game. Recent years have shown increasing evidence of what scientists have warned us about. We continue to ignore science at our peril."
It appears that Trump has an agenda. "We" are not on it." What could it possibly be? Money? Hmmmm
It is concerning to see the ongoing denial of global warming from some individuals, including those in positions of power. It's hard to imagine what could be more important than ensuring the safety and well-being of our country and its citizens. It's important to consider the motives behind such denials and to encourage leaders to prioritize science and facts over personal gain. The consequences of ignoring the reality of climate change could be catastrophic for generations to come. It's time for us to take action and hold our leaders accountable for their actions and decisions. Harv I |
Harv's Corner
What to do if someone opens a credit card in your name
BY HOLLY D. JOHNSON, BANKRATE.COM – 03/22/2024
When it comes to identity theft and fraud, there are seemingly endless ways you might be targeted. For example, a criminal with enough of your personal information may be able to file a tax return in your name, take out a payday loan or even take over accounts you have, changing your contact information to another mailing address they control.
Another type of fraud takes place when thieves open a credit card account in your name. In fact, new credit card account fraud was so prevalent in 2023 that it made up 42 percent of all identity theft complaints that year, according to data from the Insurance Information Institute (III).
Fortunately, you do have rights if you’re a victim of this type of fraud. There are also steps you can take to find out if someone opened a credit card in your name.
We outline those steps, plus additional measures that you can take to prevent future instances of fraud, in this guide.
How to find out if someone opened a credit card in your name There are several steps you can take to find out if someone has opened a credit card account (or any other loan) in your name. Consider the following moves if you’re worried about existing account fraud and future prevention:
Pull your credit reports
The best way to find out if someone has opened an account in your name is to pull your own credit reports to check. Note that you’ll need to pull your credit reports from all three bureaus — Experian, Equifax and TransUnion — to check for fraud since each report may have different information and reporting. You can get access to your credit reports from all three credit bureaus for free using the website AnnualCreditReport.com.
Check your reports in detail
Once you have accessed all three of your credit reports, take the time to look over each one in detail. Make sure every account listed on your reports is yours and that the account balances and other details listed are also correct. If you don’t recognize an account, you’ll need to report it right away. However, you should be aware that you can (and should) dispute any incorrect information and errors on your credit reports, including incorrect balances or accounts reported as open that are actually closed.
How to report identity theft
If you find an account on your credit reports that doesn’t belong to you, there are three possible explanations. It’s always possible you don’t recognize an account that is actually yours or that your account has been confused with someone else’s with a similar name. An increasingly likely answer, though, is that you are a victim of fraud. If the latter situation turns out to be true, and you discover an account on your credit reports you definitely did not open, you’ll want to take steps to halt the damage right away.
Reporting identity theft by someone you don’t know
To report identity theft when you don’t know who’s the culprit, follow these steps:
Call your credit card issuer.
In cases of fraud, you should start by calling the company where the fraud took place — in this case, the credit card issuer. Explain to the credit card issuer that someone opened an account in your name and that they are trying to steal your identity.
Ask your issuer to freeze your account.
You’ll want to confirm with your issuer that there’s no way for anyone to charge new purchases to the account. At this point, your issuer will help you take steps to close the account since it was opened via fraud.
Update your passwords.
Take the time to change the logins and passwords on all your other online accounts where you have financial information, like a credit card, linked to the profile.
Activate fraud alerts on your credit reports.
Your next step in preventing credit card fraud is placing a fraud alert on your credit reports, which you can do for one year without any charge. You can place a fraud alert using the following contact information for each of the credit bureaus:
Experian.com 888-EXPERIAN (888-397-3742)
TransUnion.com 888-909-8872
Equifax.com 800-685-1111
Report the fraud to the FTC.
Next, you’ll want to report the identity fraud to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which you can do with this online form or by calling 877-438-4338. The FTC also suggests you may want to take the additional step of filing a police report in your municipality. Once you have taken these initial steps, you need to follow up to make sure the identity theft is stopped in its tracks. Additional steps include:
Closing any other new accounts opened in your name.
With your FTC Identity Theft Report in hand, you need to call each company with fraudulent accounts in your name and ask for them to be closed. Make sure to keep track of who you spoke to and when, and keep any letters associated with the closures.
Remove bogus charges.
Any new accounts with charges in your name should be disputed. Tell the company you did not make the charges, explain that they are fraudulent and ask for the bogus charges to be removed.
Fix your credit reports.
Contact the credit bureaus and use your FTC Identity Theft Report to have fraudulent accounts removed from your credit reports.
Reporting identity theft by someone you know
While identity theft is often perpetrated by online hackers and thieves you’ve never met, it’s also common for someone you know to be the culprit. If a friend, a relative or a colleague at work could be the one who stole your identity, you’ll want to use the same steps above to report the fraud — while also being sure to file a police report. It’s likely they will face criminal charges for their acts, but you should report the crimes just the same.
What happens to my credit if I’m a victim of identity theft?
One of the common hurdles of identity theft is the potential for damage to your credit score, but you may also be on the hook for financial losses. Your liability for fraudulent charges on a credit card is limited to just $50, but your liability for fraudulent purchases made with your debit card or debit card number could be unlimited if you report the fraud more than 60 days after your banking statement was mailed to you, according to the FTC. The good news is you can use a formal process to dispute fraudulent information and credit card accounts that arise from identity fraud. You may notice initial damage to your credit score if someone opens an account in your name and racks up charges they don’t pay for, but your credit score should rebound once the credit bureaus have removed the fraudulent accounts from your reports.
Keep in mind:
Many credit card issuers advertise some level of fraud protection, such as a $0 liability policy. So depending on your issuer's rules, you may not be liable for any fraudulent purchases at all. Check your card agreement to understand how your issuer handles fraudulent charges.
Preventing future credit card fraud
When it comes to identity theft, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Here are some of the best steps you can take now to prevent credit card fraud and other types of identity theft in the future:
Consider signing up for identity theft protection
Identity theft protection companies like Identity Guard and ID Watchdog will oversee your credit reports and keep an eye out for fraud on your behalf. These companies charge a monthly or annual fee in exchange for their services, but many also offer identity theft insurance that can protect you from financial losses and help pay for experts who can assist with the identity restoration process. You also might be able to get additional fraud protection monitoring from your credit card issuer, so look into what’s already included with your account before paying for something else.
Activate a credit freeze or extended fraud alert
The FTC suggests setting up a one-year fraud alert once you notice signs of identity theft, but you can also ask the credit bureaus for an extended fraud alert that lasts for seven years. As an alternative, you can also set up a credit freeze with each of the credit bureaus, which will prevent anyone from opening new accounts in your name until you personally take steps to “unfreeze” your reports. Fortunately, anyone can freeze their credit reports or set up fraud alerts for free — even if they have never been a victim of identity theft.
Take additional steps to protect your personal information
There are other steps you can take to prevent hackers and thieves from getting their hands on your personal information in the first place. These include:
Using a mobile wallet.
A mobile wallet can help you protect your credit card account information by making it harder for a thief to steal information from your physical card.
Setting up multi-factor authentication on your accounts when available.
Having additional authentication methods will mean that a thief needs more than just your password to unlock your accounts.
Signing up for transaction alerts.
These will alert you every time you make a purchase with your card, so you’ll know right away if someone used your card information without your permission.
Taking the time to look over your credit reports.
By doing this several times per year, you can catch discrepancies and other red flags before a thief does too much damage to your credit score.
Installing antivirus software on your devices.
Computer viruses are still common ways for hackers to access your information, so having a good antivirus software installed can help you avoid those issues. You should also collect your mail every day, place a hold on your mail when you travel away from home for several days and check to make sure you’re receiving the bills you should be. Paying special attention to your billing cycles can also be helpful since you’ll know right away if one of your bills is missing and you can contact the sender, according to U.S. government sources on identity theft.
The bottom line
By keeping a close eye on your accounts and making sure your information isn’t easy to find, you can avoid becoming a repeat victim of identity theft. If you regularly make a habit of checking your credit card statements and credit report, you will be more likely to catch suspicious activity before the culprit wreaks too much havoc on your finances.
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