The following true story regarding identity theft points out an example why it is so important to get a copy of your credit report at least once a year.

I know it's all real, because it's someone else's credit that is being destroyed, right in front of my face. I've carried out everything possible to help, all to no avail.

Here's how it started. About 3 months ago, I started receiving credit card offers for a person that lived at my address 8 years ago. I thought it strange and had some questions regarding how this had just started up, but I just threw the credit card offers away.

Then two months ago, I started to receive paperwork from a welfare type of health agency.

Pondering what it was all about, I opened the letters to see if I could fix the problem and get that info to the right person.

The opened letter stated that "they were trying to get more information regarding the insurance benefits that were recently applied for.

"Right away, I knew it was someone trying to cheat the system that our taxes pay for.

I notified the police and an officer showed up quickly. I gave him some of the credit card offers and one of the insurance letters. He gave me a case number and his name, in case anyone needed to call him.

I also went to the FTC website and filled out the form and I went to the Direct Marketing Association and filled out their form to stop any mail offers to this other person at my address.

I haven't heard a word back, but I continue to get the letters about insurance and a delinquent loan.

So I called the department that handles this "free" insurance (the insurance that all the rest of us pay for).

I was predicting that after I told them it was a case of "identity theft," they'd do something right away, but they merely didn't care.

Their response was, "well we will just get in touch with them at this other address we have." I was expecting that the government office would immediately cut off benefits to this phony person, but instead they just wanted to find a way to continue the benefits flowing no matter what. So someone that is using a different person's name (and that other person's actual social security number) is receiving benefits free and clear from the government, all benefits that the rest of us pay for.

And yesterday, I got a notice from a bill collector in New York. They were collecting on an unpaid debt from Bank One, and of course it was in the name of the identity theft victim.

I knew for sure that when I called and told them it was an identity theft scam, that they'd want the police case number and then they'd go after the "fake" person. Instead, they did not want any information about the identity theft, but said they would find the "right" person with the social security number and get their money from them that way.

Imagine the surprise of the person who is having someone else use their social security number. I have a feeling that many more of those types of collection letters will be coming to my address.

My frustration stems from the fact that I've done everything I could think of to help someone else who hadn't even lived at my address for 8 years. I have no way of getting a hold of this person or I would have told him as soon as I discovered the identity theft matter.

This person is not aware that someone else is using their name, their previous address and their social security number. When the victim applies for credit or for a job, he's going to be in for a "shock" when he gets declined because of several bad debts that were never his.

That's why each of us should check our credit report and look for any suspicious activity. We all have past addresses and if someone gets our past address and social security number, we may not ever hear anything about it, until it's too late.

With credit, if you catch a problem early, the credit report can be corrected and the identity thief will just move on to someone else.

If not caught early, there could be several items of someone else's derogatory credit to fix on our report, and it can be costly in terms of time and money.

It is my hope that by providing this information, that someone else may benefit and not have to go through extensive identity theft correction.

I also want to improve awareness that all those welfare programs we pay for are being used by people who are not who they say they are (and the welfare office here doesn't seem to be concerned).

Luther Thompson, Jr.
Atlanta, Georgia
866.485.7373