An online payday lender will keep a keen eye on application qualification in order to help prevent fraudulent loans. Any financial institution needs to have some sort of filtering system in place to make every effort in the fight against fraudulent transactions. Prevention techniques not only save the company from a bad loan, but protects the victim when it is identity theft.
If you find yourself a victim of identity theft, there are four steps which the Federal Trade Commission recommends a consumer to follow. Once you discover fraudulent activity, you will want to place a fraud alert by contacting one of the three credit reporting companies; TransUnion, Equifax and Experian. The company you do call will contact the other two. Once the alert has been filed, you are entitled to a free credit report which you will need to review carefully. Look for any new inquiries to open new credit which you did not apply for or any debts which you did not create, double check the personal information; social security number, address, names and initials.
Fraud Alerts
There are two types of fraud alert. The first is an initial alert which stays on your credit report for 90 days. This is a great option for those who think that they are subject to have been involved with identity theft. This alert works well if your wallet was stolen or if you had passed on personal information in a “phishing scam”. This type of scam takes place by email or pop ups requesting passwords or account numbers. The fraudulent notice will try to persuade this information from you by disguising itself as a trusted company which needs this information to protect your accounts.
The second type of fraud alert will stay on your credit for seven years. Placing this extended alert on your credit report will give you two free credit reports within 12 months of reporting the alert. The three reporting companies will be notified and they will in turn, remove your name from marketing lists which are used by prescreened credit offers. Your name will be removed for five years unless you choose to put it back on.
In order to file these fraud alerts, the reporting company will ask for personal information to verify your identity. When a business is trying to issue credit, they will need to contact you using this information. Leaving a cell phone may help keep long delays for processing your credit. If you move or change phone numbers, let the reporting company know so they have the most recent information for you on file.
Why would an online payday lender care?
Any responsible online payday lender will care, not just for the business aspect of not having a loan repaid, but also for the individual involved. Customer representatives take a close look at all information and verify phone numbers and place of employment. Go the Federal Trade Commission’s website for more detailed information and Spotya.com blog will continue to address the next steps in what to do if your identity is stolen. Stay tuned!
