Spring Break
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Rising identity theft causes campus reaction
By: Patrick Hayslip
Issue date: 4/12/07 Section: News
"I had been checking my online activity frequently, around a couple times a week, which worked out in my favor because they didn't have a chance to open up any other credit cards using my Social Security number," Prestage said. "By the time I caught it and reported it to the credit bureaus, they went ahead and flagged my Social Security number so they couldn't open anything else."
The recent break-in of more than 96,000 NEO accounts at Texas A&M had many students worried about identity theft. Allan Baron, a sergeant in the University Police Crime Prevention division, said people concerned that their identities have been stolen can contact a reputable credit bureau such as Equifax, Experian or Transunion for a free credit report.
Baron was not able to comment on the NEO account break-in because the case is still under investigation.
The University of Texas-Arlington's database was hacked into after two computers were stolen from a faculty member's home on Oct. 12, 2006. Approximately 2,500 of the college's students' personal information, such as Social Security numbers, grades and e-mail addresses were stolen, the Associated Press reported. Ian Fairley, a 19-year-old student at UT-Arlington, had his identity stolen shortly after the break-in.
"Like any person, my first worry was my money, and then my credit card," Fairley said. "I thought all my money was going to be taken and my credit card used so much that my credit score would be ruined for years to come. I got a letter in the mail from a law firm outlining the charges against me for fraudulent checks being written."
Fairley said he didn't lose any money, but the first step he took was to cancel all the fraudulent accounts in his name and put an alert on his existing accounts to watch out for any suspicious activity. Once the thieves have the person's information, they can open new accounts and write false checks, file for bankruptcy to avoid paying debts or buy a car using the person's information for the loan, according to the FTC.
The recent break-in of more than 96,000 NEO accounts at Texas A&M had many students worried about identity theft. Allan Baron, a sergeant in the University Police Crime Prevention division, said people concerned that their identities have been stolen can contact a reputable credit bureau such as Equifax, Experian or Transunion for a free credit report.
Baron was not able to comment on the NEO account break-in because the case is still under investigation.
The University of Texas-Arlington's database was hacked into after two computers were stolen from a faculty member's home on Oct. 12, 2006. Approximately 2,500 of the college's students' personal information, such as Social Security numbers, grades and e-mail addresses were stolen, the Associated Press reported. Ian Fairley, a 19-year-old student at UT-Arlington, had his identity stolen shortly after the break-in.
"Like any person, my first worry was my money, and then my credit card," Fairley said. "I thought all my money was going to be taken and my credit card used so much that my credit score would be ruined for years to come. I got a letter in the mail from a law firm outlining the charges against me for fraudulent checks being written."
Fairley said he didn't lose any money, but the first step he took was to cancel all the fraudulent accounts in his name and put an alert on his existing accounts to watch out for any suspicious activity. Once the thieves have the person's information, they can open new accounts and write false checks, file for bankruptcy to avoid paying debts or buy a car using the person's information for the loan, according to the FTC.
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