Guard your identity with special care

Jon Bruning knows whereof he speaks. Nebraska's Attorney General has long cautioned consumers to be on guard against identity theft, and for good cause.

Last year, Bruning's consumer protection division received 788 complaints from people worried about identity theft and similar issues.

While most of the calls are banking and security, identity theft is a growing problem, Leslie Levy, director of consumer protection, told the Lincoln Journal Star. In the last two years, calls about identity theft have almost doubled.

Now it's time for Bruning to put some of his own advice into action.

While his wife was recently helping their two children pick out books at a local library, someone broke out the window of her car and stole her purse.

The Brunings immediately canceled the credit cards, put a fraud watch on their credit reports and is in the process of buying an e-mail alert that will report any changes in their credit reports or credit status.

This week, National Fraud Week, is a good time to spotlight steps to take if you think you might be a potential victim of identity theft:

* Contact your bank(s) and credit cards immediately so payments can be stopped on missing checks, PIN numbers and online banking passwords changed and new accounts opened, if appropriate.

* File a police report with your local police department or sheriff's office.

* Make sure no one has requested an unauthorized address change, title or PIN change or asked checks to be sent to another mailing address.

* Maintain a written chronology of what happened, what was lost and the steps you took to report the incident.

* Contact the three major credit bureaus and request a copy of your credit report.

In fact, under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003, residents of Nebraska and Kansas can now obtain a free copy of their credit report from all three credit bureaus (Experian, TransUnion and Equifax) once a year. By making one call, identity theft victims can receive advice, set off a nationwide fraud alert and protect their credit rating.

In addition, by filing a police report, victims can block fraudulent information from their credit reports, gain access to the identity thief's fraudulent transactions, and have their records flagged so that financial institutions ensure that all credit requests are legitimate.

To get your annual free credit report, contact: Annual Credit Report Request Service,

P.O. Box 105281

Atlanta, Ga., 30348-5281, (877) 322-8228, http://www.annualcreditreport.com