Beware: The PH Identity Thief

Remember to always use your paper shredder! But keep it unplugged if you have dogs or cats, there can be horrific consequences with inquisitive paws or tongues.

Subject: identity thief

I saw a guy fitting that description stealing my mail yesterday (4/25). He got away before I could get down 4 flights of stairs, but was carrying a bag which looked to be full of mail. This jerk was wearing a yankees baseball hat & had a very dark complexion. I wish I got my hands on him. :twisted:

Please report the mail theft to the police, as well as the post office. If it's not reported, it never happened. And the P.O. generally takes mail theft quite seriously.

I live on Prospect Place bet Vand/Carlton

Subject: PH Identity Theft

Last week he was rummaging around on Park Place between Underhill and Vanderbilt.

He is very tall (6'3" perhaps),very slim, but muscular. African American with a dark complexion and a goatee. He looks well kempt.

He wears a Yankee cap. Often wears a leather jacket, but in warm weather he'll wear a t-shirt with cut off sleeves. And of course, a backpack to carry whatever he finds.

I've also seen him twice at Houtee Couture and have wondered if he works there or does odd jobs for the owner.

Any ideas about how to deal with this guy? He could do some real damage to our unsuspecting neighbors.

this deserves a bump and a good read.

I haven't seen anyone rummaging through garbage, but do you remember the guy who was scamming people for money last year by claiming his mother had been in an accident and was in the hospital and he needed money for a tow truck (okay, I believed him, but I'm -- that is, I used to be --an easy mark...)? He fits the description below as well. Good thing you caught the fraud before they delivered the computer -- it may have saved you a trip to the hoosegow, dripping machete in hand.

If you live in a building with an easily accessible mailbox, have the letter carrier throw your mail over your gate, if possible, or get a secure slot cut into the gate. And use the shredder for all your envelopes. Don't forget to shred the credit card applications and all those blank checks that come with them that conveniently have your name already printed on them. When in doubt, shred. We shred every document with our names on, including our kids' homework. Take the mailing labels off magazines. Do your frrends a favor and shred lists of phone numbers and addresses when you're done with them, as well as the scraps of paper you use to jot down people's phone numbers and email addresses. Shred, shred, shred.

We've been doing this for years, and so far so good.

Of course I meant scam guy fits the description above, not below. Although if I saw someone who looks like apollonia's avatar, I'd be a bit leery as well -- or invite him or her in for coffee. Depends on the day.

Order the free reports from AnnualCreditReport.com (same law, much easier URL). Better yet, don't order all three reports at once, since they're likely to be more or less identical. Order one every four months to spread the monitoring out over the year.

Also, the PHIT and the Gaffler seem to have little in common besides African-Americanness and a backpack. The Gaffler has no goatee and glasses, and I don't think anyone has ever described him as notably tall (6'3" is notably tall, yes?).

Yeah, there are often minor differences but on the whole I think it's better to spread them out rather than get the free ones only once a year and not check for 12 months OR get the free ones once a year and fork out $35 a few other times per year to check up on things. I am fairly paranoid on this point because my father had his identity stolen before most people (ie. the credit bureaux and police) had heard of the concept and it was a nightmare to sort out. I guess it's a bit easier now that people are aware of the problem.

We were discussing in the other thread about signing the back of your credit cards "ASK FOR ID" or similar, and I have to say that I'm surprised at the amount of cost that credit card companies are willing to absorb just to make us feel like it's safe to keep spend-spend-spending. That's why companies like Duane Reade don't bother to check credit cards--there's never enough fraud at a drugstore to provoke Mastercard into cutting them off. Whereas someplace like J&R, where somebody could really go on a shopping spree with a stolen card, they always check the card very carefully (and even ID depending on the size of the purchase). If people regularly used stolen cards at J&R it would be a big loss for Mastercard so the store would get cut off.

stacey wrote: I recommend this also. When we got a copy of our credit reports back we noticed there was quite a few companies who checked our credit report without us even applying (i.e., Ford Motor Co., Sears, and a few mortgage companies I had never heard of). Does anyone know if the new law still allows this to happen? (I was told the more inquiries into your credit the lower your score. )

inquiries affect your score. try to have no more than 3 in any 3-6 month period. (another reason to take EmilyM's advice and only pull one report at a time)
no clue about the new law.

From myfico.com,

The score does not count “consumer-initiated” inquiries – requests you have made for your credit report, in order to check it. It also does not count “promotional inquiries” – requests made by lenders in order to make you a “pre-approved” credit offer – or “administrative inquiries” – requests made by lenders to review your account with them. Requests that are marked as coming from employers are not counted either.

What's in Your Score

qtrain wrote: From myfico.com,

The score does not count “consumer-initiated” inquiries – requests you have made for your credit report, in order to check it. It also does not count “promotional inquiries” – requests made by lenders in order to make you a “pre-approved” credit offer – or “administrative inquiries” – requests made by lenders to review your account with them. Requests that are marked as coming from employers are not counted either.

What's in Your Score

huh, that's good. makes me feel better.

Subject: Re: He's back (i think it is the same guy)

Minet wrote:
Any advice, if I see him again?
thanks,

Camera phone?
Could be intimidating. Maybe.

Subject: Re: He's back (i think it is the same guy)

Minet wrote: I live on Prospect and vanderbilt-
I left my house today and there was a guy- fitting the description- tall-thin, but muscular build, goatee, hat- wool bomber jacket with the name Henry on it, big black duffel bag- going through our building's garbage.
I was intimidated, but I asked him what he was doing (I had to ask a couple of times) He finally said he was looking for stuff to sell- I told him there was nothing in there for him and to stop- he kept going and I just stood there waiting for him to finish- he didn't take anything while I was there, but be really careful. I wasn't sure if I should or could call the cops because it is garbage and technically, not our property (But then, if that's the case- how come we get fines and tickets).
So I wasn't sure what to do.
Any advice, if I see him again?
thanks,

take a picture of him and call the cops.