How to Protect Your Account Information

ADDITIONAL STEPS YOU CAN TAKE TO PROTECT YOUR INFORMATION

REVIEW YOUR ACCOUNT STATEMENTS AND OBTAIN AND MONITOR YOUR CREDIT REPORT.

We recommend that you remain vigilant for incidents of fraud or identity theft by reviewing your account statements and free credit reports for any unauthorized activity. If you detect any unauthorized activity on financial accounts, you should immediately contact your financial institution with which the account was maintained. You may obtain a copy of your credit report, free of charge, once every 12 months from each of the three nationwide credit reporting companies. To order your annual free credit report, please visit www.annualcreditreport.com or call toll-free at 1-877-322-8228. Contact information for the three nationwide credit reporting companies is as follows:

Equifax, PO Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374, www.equifax.com, 1-800-685-1111
Experian, PO Box 2002, Allen, TX 75013, www.experian.com, 1-888-397-3742
TransUnion, PO Box 2000, Chester, PA 19016, www.transunion.com, 1-800-916-8800

NOTIFY LAW ENFORCEMENT OF SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY.

If you believe you are the victim of identity theft or have reason to believe your personal information has been misused, you should immediately contact the Federal Trade Commission and/or the Attorney General’s Office in your state. You should also contact your local law enforcement authorities and file a police report. Obtain a copy of the police report in case you are asked to provide copies to creditors to correct your records. You can also obtain information from these sources about steps an individual can take to avoid identity theft as well as information about fraud alerts and security freezes. Contact information for the Federal Trade Commission is as follows:

Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Response Center, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20580, 1-877-IDTHEFT (438-4338), www.ftc.gov/idtheft

CONSIDER PLACING A FRAUD ALERT ON YOUR CREDIT REPORT.

You may place a fraud alert on your credit report. The alert informs creditors of possible fraudulent activity within your report and requests that the creditor contact you prior to establishing any accounts in your name. To place a fraud alert on your credit report, contact any one of the three credit reporting agencies identified above. Additional information is available at www.annualcreditreport.com.

CONSIDER A SECURITY FREEZE.

You have the ability to place a security freeze on your credit report. A security freeze will prevent new credit from being opened in your name without the use of a PIN that will be issued to you when you initiate the freeze. A security freeze is designed to prevent potential creditors from accessing your credit report without your consent. As a result, a security freeze may interfere with or delay your ability to obtain credit. You must separately place a security freeze on your credit file with each credit reporting agency. To place a freeze you may be required to provide the credit reporting agency with certain identifying information, including your full name, Social Security number, date of birth, current and previous addresses, a copy of your state-issued identification card, and a recent utility bill, bank statement or insurance statement.

FAIR CREDIT REPORTING ACT.

You also have rights under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, which promotes the accuracy, fairness, and privacy of information in the files of consumer reporting agencies. Those rights include:
• You have the right to receive a copy of your credit report. The copy of your report must contain all the information in your file at the time of your request.
• Each of the nationwide credit reporting companies – Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion – is required to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months.
• You are also entitled to a free report if a company takes adverse action against you, like denying your application for credit, insurance, or employment, and you ask for your report within 60 days of receiving notice of the action. The notice will give you the name, address, and phone number of the credit reporting company. You’re also entitled to one free report a year if you are unemployed and plan to look for a job within 60 days; if you’re on welfare; or if your report is inaccurate because of fraud, including identity theft.