Protecting Yourself from Identity Fraud & Theft

Identity Fraud

Identity fraud is when someone actually uses another person's information to impersonate them, whether the victim is dead or alive, to commit illegal activities like opening a bank account, taking out a mortgage and more. 

Identity Theft

Identity theft is when someone takes another person’s information to conduct criminal activities.

Why protecting your Identity is important?

With data breaches happening almost daily, most people don’t realize they’ve been compromised until the damage is already done. Fraudsters can use your personal information to get unsecured loan or mortgage, open bank accounts and rack up financial debt without you having any beneficial interest.

It's more important than ever to watch for signs of suspicious activity and unexpected inquiries appearing on your credit file. If you notice a suspicious inquiry, you need to seek help from your local law enforcement and one of the credit reporting bodies immediately so that they can assist in stopping fraudsters in their tracks.

Credit Reporting Body (CRB) – Australia

Reporting Body	Website	Phone
Equifax (formerly Veda)	mycreditfile.com.au	1300 762 207
Dunn & Bradstreet	Check your Credit	1300 734 806
Experian	Experian Credit Services	1300 783 684

What is a credit enquiry?

Credit inquiries are usually made by organisations like banks, credit providers as well as utility companies to decide how creditworthy you are when you apply for a new account. When you submit a new credit application for an account, you have to consent to a credit check before it is actually done. Any unexpected inquiries into your credit bureau history can be one of the earliest signs that your data has been compromised.

ID theft can have huge repercussions on your life, especially if it goes unnoticed therefore everyone should take responsibility and protect themselves against identity theft and fraud.

You are entitled to one free credit file request annually from a CRB, you should use this to review your credit activities over the last 12 months to see if you actually own all the enquiries listed.