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DIY Identity Theft versus having someone do it for you

When you become a victim of Identity Theft, there are two basic paths you can choose to take. Work hard to try and restore your identity yourself, or have a company that does actual restoration take over the Identity theft restoration for you.

I have talked before about the only solution I feel is a viable solution for having someone else do it for you, and why, I think, you should have someone else do it for you.

When you become a victim of Identity Theft, it's like having your vehicle break down in the middle of the highway.

Your options

Do it yourself
You can probably hook up a tow rope

Try to listen in and diagnose what went wrong

Spend time and money learning how fix cars and working to fix what went wrong

Hire someone
Call the tow truck

Take it to a trained professional who has the ability to test with equipment you don't own

Pay a trained expert to spend the time and money working to fix what went wrong.

Some people like to fix their own cars. Me? Unless it's a little issue, I would much rather take it to someone else and let them fix my car.

Same goes with my identity.

My bias is clearly toward having someone else fix it for you. Even with as much as I know about Identity Theft, (especially with as much as I know about Identity Theft) I still make sure that I have a plan to have an attorney and a restoration specialist when I'm going through the process of restoring my name.

The Federal Trade Commission offers some good tips in the deter section of this video below. Even though I've never seen any conclusive studies that show shredding your documents will prevent Identity Theft, it's still just a good idea.

The Federal Trade Commission is now into the full swing of their deter, detect, and defend program. The FTC's bias seems to lean toward having people restore their own identities.

If you're in that camp, then the Windows Media video below, from the Federal Trade Commission, explains some good ideas if you want to try to restore your own identity.

Visit the FTC online at http://www.consumer.gov/idtheft

Or take a look at what I feel is the real problem of losing your information and the real solution to Identity Theft for individuals.

Posted by Jonathan on October 18, 2006 09:38 AM | Permalink
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Comments on DIY Identity Theft versus having someone do it for you

I guess it's a little like when the phone company first started issuing credits for 900 number and collect calls that created high bills. The phone company would remove a certain amount, but as a one time only deal. If it happened again, you were to pay the bill, even if it's not correct.

With identity theft, since the person is usually not caught right away, there could be credit issues that run on for years, each one popping up as time goes on. Not all bad debts are reported at the same time, so new ones can pop up at any time. I agree, it's better to let the professionals handle it, because they are better able to sort through the mess, and be able to talk to the collectors, and have it make sense to them as to what really happens. Instead of making it look like you cried wolf, it would look more like are paying a compnay to handle the mess made by identity theives.

Posted by: boomersrec | March 7, 2007 01:27 PM
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