The Attorney General provides Consumer Alerts to inform the public of unfair, misleading, or deceptive business practices, and to provide information and guidance on other issues of concern. Consumer Alerts are not legal advice, legal authority, or a binding legal opinion from the Department of Attorney General.
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When your identity or personal information is in the hands of a fraudster, you need to act fast to minimize damage done and regain control of your identity.
If your wallet, Social Security card, or other personal information was lost or stolen, contact the credit reporting companies and place a fraud alert on your credit file. Make sure you check your bank and other financial statements for unusual activity. You may want to take additional steps, depending on what information was lost or stolen.
Identity theft victims have protections under federal law for ATM or debit card transactions. It’s best to act fast when you discover an unauthorized withdrawal or purchase.
Many card issuers have voluntarily agreed that an account holder will not owe more than $50 for transactions made with a lost or stolen ATM or debit card. If you don’t report the loss within 60 days of the day of the documented loss, you could lose all of the money the identity theft stole from your account. The 60 days begins on the day your financial institution sent you the account statement showing the unauthorized withdrawals.