A fraudulent account on your credit report is an account someone opened using your name or information without your permission. It is not the same as a mixed file (another real person’s account attached to your file by the bureau’s matching software), and the difference matters, because federal law gives identity-theft victims a faster way out: a block.
This post covers how to confirm the account is fraud, how to get it blocked, what the lender has to do, and when a fraudulent account that will not come off becomes a legal claim.
First, make sure it is fraud
Before you treat an unfamiliar account as identity theft, rule out the ordinary explanations:
- An account you are only an authorized user on, such as a parent’s or former spouse’s card.
- An account sold or transferred, which can appear under a new lender’s or collector’s name.
- A mixed file, where the account belongs to another real person with a similar name, address or Social Security number. Then the fix is a dispute, not a block; see mixed credit report.
If none of those fits, and the account was opened with your name and information, treat it as fraud.
Step 1: Report it and get an identity theft report
Report the identity theft to the Federal Trade Commission at IdentityTheft.gov. The report you get there is an identity theft report you can use with the credit bureaus. Keep a copy.
Step 2: Ask each bureau to block the account
Send each bureau that shows the account a copy of your identity theft report, proof of your identity, and a statement identifying the information that is not yours. The bureau must block that information within four business days of receiving those, and it must tell the company that reported the account that the information may be the result of identity theft.
A bureau can decline or remove a block only on narrow grounds, such as a material misrepresentation in your request, and must tell you if it does.
Step 3: Tell the lender, and ask for the records
Contact the company that opened the account, say it was opened by fraud, and ask it to close the account. You can also ask it, in writing and with your identity theft report, for copies of the application and transaction records for the fraudulent account. A business that opened an account in your name generally has to provide those records to you within 30 days.
Once a lender has been told by a bureau that information resulted from identity theft, it must have procedures to stop reporting that information again.
Step 4: Protect your file going forward
- A fraud alert tells lenders to verify your identity before opening new credit. An initial alert lasts one year. With an identity theft report you can place an extended alert, which lasts seven years. The bureau you contact must tell the other two.
- A credit freeze stops most new lenders from seeing your report at all. Placing and lifting a freeze is free.
When the account will not come off
Three outcomes mean the problem has become a legal one:
- The bureau did not block the account within four business days of receiving a complete request, or later put it back.
- The lender kept reporting the account after the bureau told it about the identity theft.
- You disputed the account with the bureau, and it came back “verified” even though your identity theft report says it is not yours.
The Fair Credit Reporting Act lets you recover the losses the account caused you: a denied loan, a higher rate, a refused apartment, the time spent trying to fix it. For a willful violation you can recover actual damages or statutory damages of $100 to $1,000, plus punitive damages, and attorney’s fees and costs. A claim must be filed within two years of when you discover the violation and no more than five years after it happened; see the FCRA statute of limitations.
If a fraudulent account is still on your report after you sent the bureau your identity theft report, I review the file at no cost and tell you whether there is a claim. You pay nothing unless we win. The identity theft credit report lawyer page explains how those cases work, and you can contact us to send what you have.
Admitted in Pennsylvania and New Jersey; available to appear pro hac vice in other federal courts.
Common questions
How long does a bureau have to remove a fraudulent account?
With an identity theft report, proof of identity and a statement of what is not yours, the bureau must block it within four business days. Without an identity theft report, it is handled as an ordinary dispute, which generally takes up to 30 days.
Do I need a police report?
Not for a block. An identity theft report filed with the FTC at IdentityTheft.gov is enough.
Will the fraudulent account still hurt my score after it is blocked?
A blocked account is removed from what the bureau reports about you, so it should no longer be counted.
Should I dispute or ask for a block?
If the account is identity theft, ask for a block with your identity theft report; it is faster and puts specific duties on the bureau and the lender. If it is another person’s real account (a mixed file), dispute it.
Can I get the lender’s records of the fraudulent account?
Yes. With your identity theft report and proof of identity, a business that opened the account generally has to give you the application and transaction records within 30 days.
What if the account comes back after it was removed?
Keep both versions of your report. A blocked account should not be reported again, and a lender told about identity theft must have procedures to prevent that. If it comes back, that is the point to have the file reviewed.
Sources: 15 U.S.C. §§ 1681c-1, 1681c-2, 1681g(e), 1681i, 1681n, 1681o, 1681p and 1681s-2(a)(6); Federal Trade Commission, What To Know About Credit Freezes and Fraud Alerts and IdentityTheft.gov; Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, What do I do if I am a victim of identity theft?
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