Can someone help understand?

Question

my exgirlfriend took made away with my social security number. and the present one made a research start telling me she know my social number and my allen number.

my question is what they going do with all this information they're gathering?

Answer 1

First of all, report the theft of your social security number to the Social Security Administration and get a replacement card as soon as possible.  A person using your card or number can get other personal information about you and apply for credit in your name. So if you suspect someone is using your number, you should take these steps to protect yourself and your financial health:

Educate yourself about identity theft;

File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission;

Check your Social Security records (call toll-free 1-800-772-1213; TTY 1-800-325-0778) to ensure your income is calculated correctly; and

Monitor your credit reports

You can replace your card for free if it is lost or stolen. However, you are limited to three replacement cards in a year and 10 during your lifetime. Legal name changes and other exceptions do not count toward these limits. For example, changes in noncitizen status that require card updates may not count toward these limits. Also, you may not be affected by these limits if you can prove you need the card to prevent a significant hardship.

   If you suspect that someone else is using your SSN for work, or you have received notice from the IRS of unreported taxable income that is not yours, you should report the problem to SSA by calling 1-800-772-1213. Our representatives will take the appropriate action to ensure that your Social Security records are correct.

     If your SSN has been used to run up bills or to obtain credit, notify the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at

1-877-ID-THEFT (438-4338).

     Congress has directed the FTC to establish a centralized database to receive all allegations of identity theft and to provide victims with information to help resolve problems with identity theft.

     File a report with the local police or the police department where the identity theft took place, and keep a copy of the police report as proof of the crime.

     Contact the fraud units of the three major credit-reporting bureaus:

-- Equifax: 1-800-525-6285; or Internet: http://www.equifax.com

-- Trans Union: 1-800-680-7289; or Internet: http://www.transunion.com/

-- Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN (1-888-397-3742); or Internet: http://www.experian.com

We can understand your apprehension about someone knowing your Social Security number (SSN) but SSA cannot place a fraud alert on your Social Security number.  There are several steps that you can take to protect yourself if you believe that your SSN has been compromised.

If your card has been lost or stolen, you should apply for a replacement card. Details on replacing your card can be found at How do I replace a lost Social Security card?

Always keep your card in a safe place. Do not carry it with you unless you need it for a specific purpose, such as to apply for a job. You can prevent the loss or misuse of your card by keeping it with other valuable personal documents, such as your insurance papers and birth certificate.

WHAT SSA CAN DO

We have safeguards built into our systems to prevent people from using the same SSN. When employers report wages and taxes for their payrolls, we verify the accuracy of the name and SSN before posting the earnings. This matching operation immediately locates situations where someone is working under their own name, but under someone else's SSN. These earnings are posted to the Suspense File where they may be resolved at a future date.

We also have a process called "reconciliation," that we run jointly with the IRS. One of the purposes of reconciliation is to detect situations where an individual is working under the name and SSN of someone else.

Your earnings record is the only record that we can correct. We have no jurisdiction over records maintained by others, even if you were required to provide your SSN to obtain their services.

WHAT YOU CAN DO

If you suspect that someone else is using your SSN for work, or you have received notice from the IRS of unreported taxable income that is not yours, you should report the problem to SSA by calling 1-800-772-1213. Our representatives will take the appropriate action to ensure that your Social Security records are correct.

If your SSN has been used to run up bills or to obtain credit, Social Security cannot straighten out your credit record. However, we suggest you take the following steps:

1. Check your SSA earnings record. You can request a Social Security Statement to verify the accuracy of the reported earnings and request correction if necessary.

Details on requesting a Statement can be found at the following Internet address: www.socialsecurity.gov/statement

2. Notify the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)

1-877-ID-THEFT (438-4338).

The FTC also makes available an identity theft web page at the Internet address: http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/id...

Hearing-impaired individuals may call the "TTY" number, 202-326-2502.

Congress has directed the FTC to establish a centralized database to receive all allegations of identity theft and to provide victims with information to help resolve problems with identity theft.

3. File a report with the local police or the police department where the identity theft took place, and keep a copy of the police report as proof of the crime.

4. Contact the fraud units of the three major credit-reporting bureaus:

-- Equifax: 1-800-525-6285; or Internet: http://www.equifax.com

-- Trans Union: 1-800-680-7289; or Internet: http://www.transunion.com/

-- Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN (1-888-397-3742); or Internet: http://www.experian.com

You should:

-- Identify yourself as an identity theft victim.

-- Request that fraud alerts be placed on your credit records requiring creditors to contact you before approving new credit or making any changes to an existing account.

-- Ask for copies of your credit reports. (There may be a cost.)

Call each creditor to report fraud for any account that has been tampered with or opened fraudulently.

Close the credit accounts that you know or believe have been tampered with or opened fraudulently.

Identity Theft And Your Social Security Number

Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in America. A dishonest person who has your Social Security number can use it to get other personal information about you. Identity thieves can use your number and your good credit to apply for more credit in your name. Then, they use the credit cards and do not pay the bills. You may not find out that someone is using your number until you are turned down for credit or you begin to get calls from unknown creditors demanding payment for items you never bought.

Identity thieves get your personal information by:

1. Stealing wallets, purses and your mail (bank and credit card statements, pre-approved credit offers, new checks and tax information)

2. Stealing personal information you provide to an unsecured site on the Internet, from business or personnel records at work and personal information in your home.

3.Rummaging through your trash, the trash of businesses and public trash dumps for personal data;

Posing by phone or E-mail as someone who legitimately needs information about you (this happened to me, when I got a fake email from ebay, telling me I needed to "update my profile information" and sent a 2 page form asking for my full name, address, birthdate, SSN, bank account number, phone number, etc. It even asked for my Mother's full maiden name!!  I thought it was real until I contacted ebay and learned they don't send messages to their buyers/sellers by regular email but only through their website's message board area. I ended up having to get all new credit card numbers and changing my bank account), such as employers or landlords; or buying personal information from “inside” sources. For example, an identity thief may pay a store employee for information about you that appears on an application for goods, services or credit.

So, if your current girlfriend could find out your number by doing research--I assume you meant on the computer--and found it easy to do, then chances are so can thousands of other people.