Fraud Checklist
Contact Financial Institutions, Credit Card Companies, and Lenders
- Call the Financial Institution or Credit Card company where you know fraud occurred using a number you have on file or from their website. Carrollton Bank customers should contact their local Carrollton Bank office.
- Provide as much detail about the fraudulent act including:
- How and when you were contacted by the fraudster and if you clicked on any links
- Information you provided to the fraudster
- Dates and amounts of fraudulent transactions
- The name and contact details the fraudster provided to you
- Retain any emails, text messages, letters, or voice mails from the fraudster
- Request that fraudulent charges be removed
- Putting a fraud alert and hold on your account or closing your account may minimize additional fraudulent activity
- If you have online account access:
- Change your password
- Enable 2 Factor Authentication, if available
- Enroll in online account alerts
- Contact all other Financial Institutions, Credit Card Companies and Lenders
- Place a fraud alert on your accounts
- If necessary, request new cards or account numbers
- If you have online account access:
- Change your password
- Enable 2 Factor Authentication, if available
- Enroll in online account alerts
Contact Law Enforcement
- File a Police Report
- Report the fraud to your local police department
- Request a copy of the police report. You may need it for banks, credit bureaus, and other institutions.
- File a Report with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) if applicable – ic3.gov
- Provide a copy of the IC3 report to the institution where the fraud occurred.
Contact the Credit Bureaus
- Place a fraud alert with any of the Credit Bureaus
- A fraud alert only lasts one year.
- Contact any of the three credit bureaus:
- Obtain your credit reports
- Get your free credit reports from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Go to annualcreditreport.com or call 1-877-322-8228
- Review your reports. Make note of any account or transaction you don’t recognize. This will help you identify and report other instances of theft
Contact the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
- Report to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
- Go to IdentityTheft.gov or call 1-877-438-4338
- The FTC will help you create a recovery plan, update your plan as needed, track your progress, and pre-fill forms and letters for you
Other Considerations
- Document Everything
- Keep a log of calls, emails, and letters
- Save copies of all reports
- Keeping this information can help you in the future if suspicious accounts or transactions reappear
- If fraudulent activity was the result of activity on your device, such as clicking on a suspicious link or visiting a fraudulent website, consider:
- Remove the device from the network
- Have your device scanned for malware
- Using a different device, update any passwords on accounts
- Contact any other companies that you do business with such as insurance, investment, retirement if personal information was shared
Resources