Credit/Identity Fraud?

I work at a bank and teach our employees all about credit reports and how to pull them. I pull my own 3 times a year (1 agency every 4 months).

There is no reason to stress about that question. Before you view your actual credit history it will ask security quesitons. This is one of their standard security questions. One of the possible responses will be 'none' or 'none of the above' and that is the answer you will select. Once you get past the security questions that is when you will see all of your actual credit information. If you get to that point and you are seeing a mortgage, then you will need to dispute.

Good for you pulling your credit! Everyone should do this through www.annualcreditreport.com.

The mortgage on there could be intentional fraud, by your mom or whoever, or it could be a computer mix up ( human beings don't usually add stuff to those reports manually, it is a bunch of computers relaying any accounts with 3 or more types of matching ID info....if someone has the same name, first and last and age, and any address/town they have lived at, it can connect you and cross your info, especially becasue many accounts don't have an individualizing information, like birthdate or SS# , things like leases/rental contracts, phone bills, utiities etc. I have had 2 instances of another person near my age, from my hometown ( he was actually in my class in High School - her first and last name ( her maiden name, but my married name) are the same as mine, and the computers that compile the credit reports crossed our info and put a bunch of her bad accounts that were in collections onto my report, 2 times, and I got calls from a collection agency, that is how i found out one time and another time I applied for refinancing our home jointly with my husband and the bank alerted me to something that looked wrong on there. Funny thing is, the collection agency called me telling me that i owed my GRANDFATHER (He's the town dentist in our hometown) $900 dollars!?!?! Uhm he doesn't charge me, first of all, and i have not had any dental work in years that would cost that much, just cleanings, since i have no cavities.

It takes some time ( usually they say 3-6 months, but all the times i have disputed anything it has been cleared way faster), but you have to call the credit bureau(s) that has the wrong info on their report and you have to dispute it. They will ask for and find proof that it is wrong and will eventually take it off your report, but you need to keep checking your reports regularly for the rest of your life, to make sure it doesn't keep happening. Like another responeder said, pull each of the 3 reports at least once a year, alternating or rotating which comany you check every 4 months - you legally have to be allowed to get one free report each year from each company.

Also, the answers you were chosing "none" on - they aren't a trick, they are the company verifying that you really are the person whose report it is, you have to answer them correctly, they are questions about what is on your report. But if there is something on your report you don't know about or that is wong, yes, the questions can make it inaccessible online, since you won't know the right answer, and you will have to call or snail-mail them to get your reports.

Good luck and good for you for being pro-active and protecting your credit rating - think how much more damage could be done if you hadn't checked until you needed to buy a house or a car!

I would contact the credit agency. They may request more info from you the old fashioned way--a copy of your drivers license and another piece of ID. Then they will mail or fax your credit report. If there is fraud info on there, you will have to fight to get it off. It is possible that someone with the same name has this mortgage so not necessarily fraud, but no way to know until you get the report unfortunately.

You will need to work to get this removed. Once you have the credit reports in hand, contact any banks that list you as having a mortgage or account that you do not have. Request that they make a report to each credit agency that indicates the error and request that the item be removed. Then place a credit watch on your accounts where every credit score request and every application for credit involves you being notified immediately.

Unfortunately the credit of minor's is easy pickings for ID theft because so few people check a kid's credit report. That reminds me that I should check my son's. And you are probably right about your mom :( most ID theft from kids is done by a relative...sad.

You must definitely follow up on this. Don' t let this go as it can seriously impact your financial future as well as your job or career. Many employers do routine credit checks.

Check out the federal government's site on identity theft to see what you need to do next to deal with this and protect yourself.

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/idtheft/

Best wishes to you.

J. F.