For years, two women in Bremerton, Washington of credit in other people’s names, working from documents they pulled out of stolen mail. Emily Vranic and Heather Marquis redirected the new accounts’ statements to an address they controlled, so no bill ever reached the victims. They pleaded guilty in federal court this month to bank fraud and aggravated identity theft in a scheme prosecutors say stole nearly $229,000 from banks and bank customers.
If you have ever worried about a credit card opened in your name, this case shows how quickly stolen mail can turn into a much bigger identity theft problem. Opening a new account is the leading form of identity misuse reported to the Identity Theft Resource Center. In its latest data, 62.1% of attempted misuse cases began with a new account application rather than the takeover of an account the victim already held.
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When people picture an account opened in their name, they may imagine a checking account at a bank they have never set foot in. The more likely target is a credit card. Credit cards made up 41% of attempted account misuse reported to the ITRC last year. Checking accounts came to 17.7% and personal loans to 8.5%.
A to open in someone else’s name, and the reason is in how the application is cleared. A lender matches the submitted name, date of birth, address and Social Security number (SSN) against the bureau file. When those details fit a record that already exists, an automated system can approve the application with no one confirming that the applicant is the person being described. Assemble enough of someone’s and stolen mail, and the check clears.
Vranic and Marquis did not stop at one account per victim. Once they controlled someone’s identity, they activated existing cards, opened new credit lines and accounts tied to the same name.
This is common. The ITRC found that 25.6% of victims are now handling two or more identity incidents at once, up from 23.5% the year before. The same stolen details, including name, date of birth, address and SSN, can open the next account as easily as the first.
A new account does not announce itself. It reaches your credit report only after the , which puts the first record 30 to 60 days behind the opening. Banks report to the bureaus monthly, and the bureaus need up to two weeks more to post the change.
The first paper notice goes wherever the application is listed. Vranic and Marquis had the statements mailed to their own address, not the victims’. When the mail reaches the right house, it may read like a routine offer or a card no one ordered, which makes it easy to set aside.
By the time a denied loan or a collections call makes the account impossible to ignore, it has been open and drawing money for weeks.
Move quickly, because every day an account stays open gives a thief more time to spend money, damage your credit or try the same information somewhere else.
Call the credit card company or lender that opened the account and tell them the account is fraudulent. Ask them to close or freeze the account, stop any pending charges and send written confirmation that you are not responsible for the debt.
Go to IdentityTheft.gov. The Federal Trade Commission’s site generates an Identity Theft Report and recovery plan to help you report identity theft, limit the damage and fix your credit.
Your FTC Identity Theft Report is usually the key document for disputing fraudulent accounts. Some lenders, banks or debt collectors may also ask for a police report. If that happens, file one with your local police department and keep a copy for your records.
Keep copies of account statements, collection letters, emails, dispute letters, FTC reports, police reports and confirmation numb
