You need to report your identity theft to a law enforcement agency. You have options about where to file the report. Your report can be:
- An Identity Theft Form filed with the Federal Trade Commission or
- A police report filed at your local police station.
As an alternative to a police report, if the idenity theft involved the U.S. mail, you can file an identity theft report with the U.S. Postal Service.
It is generally a good idea to:
- File an Identity Theft Form with the Federal Trade Commission AND
- File a police report.
You should only file a report for coerced debts that you did not benefit from.
What if I benefitted from the debt that was taken out in my name by an abuser without my consent?
People generally can’t claim certain identity theft protections if they took possession of goods, services, or money resulting from the identity theft. They do not have the right to "block" the debt from credit reports in cases where there is coerced debt, but the victim has something of value from the theft.
For example, if your abuser took out an auto loan in your name without your consent, but you now jointly own or regularly drive the car, you might not be able to block that debt from your credit report.
If this is your situation, contact an attorney before taking any action regarding the debt. See our List of Domestic Abuse and Legal Resources for a list of free and low-cost attorneys.
