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To reduce the risk of identity theft, protect personal information on paper and online, share identifiers carefully, and check financial accounts and credit reports for unfamiliar activity. A free credit freeze can make it harder for someone to open new credit in your name, but it does not stop every kind of misuse. If you spot a warning sign, contact the affected company and use the Federal Trade Commission’s IdentityTheft.gov recovery process.
This guide covers U.S. consumer protections and agencies. No single safeguard prevents all identity theft, and an unfamiliar charge or bill is a reason to investigate—not proof by itself.
Protect personal information before it is misused
Secure paper records and mail
Keep financial records, Social Security and Medicare cards, and other documents with personal or financial information in a safe place. The FTC’s consumer guidance, updated September 2024, puts the disposal advice plainly: “When you decide to get rid of them, shred them before you throw them away.” A cross-cut shredder is one option, but not a requirement: the FTC also suggests looking for a local shred day or obscuring account numbers with a marker. Take incoming mail from your mailbox promptly.
Be deliberate about sharing your Social Security number
When an organization asks for your Social Security number (SSN), ask why it needs it, how it will protect it, whether another identifier will work, and whether it needs the full number or only the last four digits. Some organizations have legitimate reasons to request an SSN. But an unsolicited call, email, or text asking for it is a scam warning: the FTC says organizations such as the IRS, a bank, or an employer will not contact you that way to ask for your SSN. Do not provide personal information in response to an unexpected request; contact the organization through a channel you find independently.
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Secure online accounts
Use strong, distinct passwords and turn on multi-factor authentication (MFA) wherever it is offered. MFA requires two or more credentials, making it harder for someone to access an account with only a username and password. It is a useful barrier, not a guarantee: keep checking for suspicious activity and respond if an account appears compromised.
Use credit protections for new-account fraud
A credit freeze and a fraud alert both concern new credit opened in your name, but they work differently. The FTC describes freezes as free and says they do not affect credit scores. A freeze can make a legitimate credit application harder until you lift it, so plan to temporarily lift it when a lender needs access to your report.
| Protection | What it does | Where to set it up | Practical limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Credit freeze | Restricts prospective lenders’ access to your credit report, making it harder to open new credit in your name. | Contact Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion separately; a freeze with one bureau does not freeze the other two. | You may need to lift it when applying for legitimate credit. It does not protect against every kind of identity theft or misuse of existing accounts. |
| Initial fraud alert | Asks businesses to verify your identity before opening new credit. | Contact one of the three nationwide credit bureaus; it must notify the other two. | The FTC describes the initial alert as lasting one year. It is a request for verification, not a restriction on report access like a freeze. |
You can use both tools, depending on your circumstances. Neither replaces checking your accounts and reports or securing accounts that may already be compromised. These details reflect FTC guidance; check the relevant bureau’s current instructions when placing or lifting a freeze or alert.
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Review bills, bank and payment-account statements, and credit reports routinely. Investigate activity you do not recognize. Possible warning signs include:
- A bill, charge, or withdrawal you did not make.
- A debt-collection call about a debt you do not recognize.
- An unfamiliar account or transaction on a credit report.
- A bill that stops arriving. A billing-address change could be one explanation, so contact the company to check whether the account details changed.
- An unexpected notice that someone filed a tax return or earned wages under your SSN.
These clues call for verification; they do not establish on their own that identity theft occurred. For credit reports, the FTC’s September 2024 recovery guidance described free weekly reports through AnnualCreditReport.com. Access terms can change, so check the site for current availability.
What to do if you find suspected identity theft
- Contact each affected company. Ask its fraud department to close or freeze the affected account. Change the account’s passwords, logins, and PINs, and update credentials on other accounts if you reused them.
- Protect your credit and inspect your reports. Place a fraud alert and obtain your credit reports to look for unfamiliar accounts or transactions. If you do not already have a freeze, consider placing one with all three bureaus. An existing freeze does not replace a fraud alert or a report review.
- Report it at IdentityTheft.gov. The FTC says the site can create a free personal recovery plan, an Identity Theft Report, letters, and forms, and help you track progress. Choose the plan that matches the kind of misuse involved.
- Keep a record of the case. Save correspondence, note calls and the people or departments you spoke with, and follow the steps in your case-specific plan.
- If a data-breach notice started the concern, use the breach-specific process. IdentityTheft.gov has guidance for exposed information. If the organization offers free monitoring, the FTC says you may take advantage of it; monitoring is not a substitute for reviewing accounts or using a freeze when appropriate.
Respond to tax, employment, or benefits-related misuse
Tax identity theft
A rejected tax return can have several causes, so rejection alone does not prove identity theft. An IRS notice that a return was already filed under your SSN, or income reported from an employer you do not know, can be a warning sign. Report the issue through IdentityTheft.gov; the FTC says the process can provide an Identity Theft Report, an IRS Identity Theft Affidavit, and a personal recovery plan. IRS Form 14039 is also available for submission by mail. Follow the IRS instructions for your circumstances.
For prevention, the FTC recommends enabling two-factor authentication on tax-preparation accounts and filing early if possible. If you suspect someone used your SSN for work, review your Social Security Administration work history and contact the SSA about errors. The FTC also describes the E-Verify “lock” feature as a way to make unauthorized employment use harder. Use the relevant agency’s current instructions for your case.
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Employment-related misuse
If your earnings record suggests your SSN was used for work you did not perform, review the SSA work history and report errors to the SSA. For the specific possibility of unauthorized employment use, follow the FTC’s guidance on E-Verify’s SSN lock. These steps address employment-related concerns; they do not replace securing affected financial accounts or following a recovery plan.
Unemployment-benefit identity theft
If you are contacted about unemployment benefits you did not apply for, the FTC’s February 2026 guidance says to notify your employer and state workforce agency, then report the incident to the FTC. That guidance also recommends freezing reports with all three bureaus, checking free weekly reports, disputing unfamiliar accounts, and considering an IRS Identity Protection PIN for tax protection. Follow the state agency’s instructions for the claim involved.
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A monitoring or recovery service is optional; a subscription is not required to use the official protections described above. Services may monitor some reports or accounts, send alerts, or help with recovery steps, but monitoring cannot prevent every form of misuse. Before paying, check which information and accounts are covered, what alerts or recovery help are included, and whether a breach response already offers monitoring at no cost.
Some services include or offer identity-theft insurance. FTC guidance says policies may cover certain out-of-pocket recovery expenses, lost wages, or legal fees, but generally do not reimburse money stolen by scammers. Read exclusions and deductibles, and check for overlapping coverage under homeowners or renters insurance. A service can assist with parts of recovery; it does not replace the free steps available from the FTC, credit bureaus, and relevant agencies.
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