| Scam Jam 2007 held
By Karen WilliamsonKARENW@CULLMANTIMES.COMExperts agree shredding mail, paying bills and viewing bank statements online, picking up new check orders at the bank and mailing bills at the post office are ways to stop identity theft.If people take those steps, they will have reduced their risk for identity theft considerably, according to Federal Trade Commission attorney Paul Davis from Atlanta who was one of the experts at the 2007 Scam Jam Wednesday at City Hall."That right there will eliminate a certain percentage of identity theft," he said.Paying bills online requires the use of anti-virus software and firewalls on personal computers, and both have to be updated regularly, he said.Davis recommends contacting one of the three consumer reporting agencies — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion — every four months to request a free credit report."Federal law allows you to get free copies of each one every year," he said.That way people will know quickly if there is a problem.
HOW TO DO IT
Here's how to submit a security freeze request to each of the three national credit bureaus. There's no charge for identity theft victims, but you must submit a police report. Experian and Equifax require you to submit your request by certified mail; TransUnion does not. .
State Legislator Lauds Credit Bureaus
LITTLE ROCK -- State Rep. Dawn Creekmore successfully guided her bill to allow Arkansans to "freeze" their credit reports to thwart identity theft through the Legislature this year, only to have Gov. Mike Beebe use his veto power to kill the measure.The option will soon be available anyway. The three credit bureaus, TransUnion, Experian and Equifax, have said they will begin allowing consumers in all 50 states to request credit freezes."What they're doing is exactly what my bill would have done," Creekmore, D-Hensley, said, noting the change is coming only a few months after her bill would have taken effect.A credit freeze prevents a person's credit report from being accessed without the person's consent, preventing identity thieves from opening accounts or obtaining credit in the person's name.
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