Identity Theft Prevention
Identity theft is a serious crime, one that affects millions of Americans each year according to statistics published by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Identity theft occurs when someone steals your personal information in order to commit fraud or other crimes such as opening credit in your name or using your information to make unauthorized purchases.
Unfortunately, anyone can be victimized and it can cost you hundreds of dollars and many hours of your time to repair the damage that can be done to your credit and your personal reputation. LPL Financial is committed to protecting your privacy, but there are steps that you can take to reduce your risk in identity theft.
- Review credit card and bank statements regularly and check for unauthorized transactions.
- Freeze your credit with each of the three credit reporting agencies. This will prevent anyone from opening accounts, applying for loans, or applying for a new credit card in your name while your credit is frozen. If you choose not to freeze your credit, request a credit report from one of the three reporting agencies every four months and check for any drastic changes in your score.
- Collect your mail daily and properly dispose of documents such as bills, statements, and credit card offers that may contain your personal data.
- Utilize a password management tool to create and store unique passwords.
- Enable multi-factor authentication (MFA or 2FA) on all accounts.
- Avoid clicking on links or opening attachments from unknown sources.
- Limit your online presence and do not overshare personal information on social platforms.
If you do become a victim of identity theft, here are the steps you should immediately take:
- Contact the financial institution immediately where the suspicious activity occurred to let them know of the incident and possible fraudulent activity.
- File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission on the Identity Theft Hotline toll-free at (877) 438-4338. Any suspicious emails or calls should also be reported to the Federal Trade Commission.
- File a police report with your local police department.
- Notify your major creditors and contact credit card companies to check for fraudulent charges and to stop future charges.
- You should immediately contact PrivacyResponseTeam@lplfinancial.com so impacted accounts can be put on alert and properly secured.
- You should then navigate to https://www.identitytheft.gov/#/Steps (Identitytheft.gov Recovery Guide) and follow the steps and procedures outlined to begin securing your non-LPL accounts and repair the damage caused by the incident.
- If you are a victim of a data breach and your information has been lost or exposed, then please follow the steps outlined in the IdentityTheft.gov Data Breach Guide (https://www.identitytheft.gov/#/Info-Lost-or-Stolen) instead.
- Review your annual credit report at https://www.annualcreditreport.com. You may view your credit report there for evidence of any inaccuracies or fraudulent accounts.
- Place a fraud alert or freeze on your credit bureau reports and review your reports for any suspicious activity. You only need to contact one of the reporting agencies to place the alert on your report. That agency is then required to notify the other agencies. The contact information for the credit bureaus is as follows:
Equifax Credit Information Services, Inc.
P.O. Box 740241
Atlanta, GA 30374
(888) 766-0008
https://www.equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/credit-freeze
TransUnion Fraud Victim Assistance Department
P.O. Box 6790
Fullerton, CA 92834
(800) 680-7289
https://www.transunion.com/credit-freeze
Experian
475 Anton Blvd.
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
(888) 397-3742
https://www.experian.com/freeze/center.html
For more information about identity theft and related resources, please contact:
Federal Trade Commission Consumer Response Center
600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20580
(877) FTC-HELP [877-382-4357]
Tracking #443964