Member Security and Fraud Prevention

Identity Theft

Identity Theft is defined as "stealing another person's personal identifying information to fraudulently establish credit, run up debt or take over existing financial accounts."

What can you do to protect yourself?

• Order a copy of your credit report from each of the three major credit bureaus at least once a year.
• Choose to "opt-out" of mailing lists maintained by the credit bureaus and by the Direct Marketing Association.
• Carry with you only the identification information that you actually need.
• Do not give out personal or account information over the phone, through the mail or over the internet, unless you have initiated the contact.
• Shred your account statements, receipts and pre-approved credit offers.
• Protect your mail. Deposit outgoing mail at the post office and promptly remove mail after it has been delivered.
• Review all of your account statements on a timely basis and promptly notify the institutions of any discrepancies.

 What can you do if you become a victim?

• Contact the fraud department of the major credit bureaus to place a fraud alert or victim's statement on your file.
• Provide the institutions where the fraudulent accounts have been opened with an ID Theft Affidavit and request that they close the accounts immediately.
• File a report with the applicable law enforcement agency and maintain a copy of the report.
• Contact any other institution where the fraud may spread, such as financial institutions, investment companies or utility companies.

Important Contact Information if you become a victim...

• 1-888-567-8688 - to opt-out of the credit bureaus' pre-screened credit card offers.
• Direct Marketing Association (DMA) - to opt-out of direct mail, e-mail or telemarketing solicitations - https://www.dmachoice.org/.
• Federal Trade Commission (FTC) - To obtain an ID Theft Affidavit - 1-877-IDTHEFT or www.consumer.gov/idtheft.
• Ohio Attorney General's Office - to obtain public information and assistance - (614) 466-4320 or https://www.ohioattorneygeneral.gov/.
• Social Security Administration - to report the theft of your social security number - 1-800-269-0271 or www.ssa.gov.
• U. S. Postal Inspection Service - to report stolen mail https://www.uspsoig.gov/.

 The following are Bureaus and other providers to whom you can report fraud, submit victim's statements and obtain reports...

• Equifax Credit Services - 1-800-759-5979 for Credit Report; 1-800-525-6285 to report fraud or visit www.equifax.com.
• Experian - 1-888-397-3742 for Credit Report; 1-800-397-3742 to report fraud or visit www.experian.com.
• TransUnion - 1-800-888-4213 for Credit Report; 1-800-680-7289 to report fraud or visit www.transunion.com.
• SCAN - 1-800-262-7771 (checks and debit cards)
• TeleCheck - 1-800-710-9898 (checks and debit cards)
• Chexsystems - 1-800-328-5121 (checks and debit cards)