General chatter - has anyone been a victim of identity theft before?

i'm not sure if i've been scammed, but a couple months ago i careless gave away a copy of my driver's license and my social security number to someone who may not be who he said he was. there is reason for me to be suspicious, but without revealing too much details there's also reason to believe i'm just being paranoid and i don't want to wrongly accuse someone of something he didn't do.

i actually have excellent credit score and i've put fraud alert just in case (i've also canceled my old credit cards also just in case), but i'm not sure if that's enough. does anyone know what else there is to do to prevent something really horrible from happening while i still have the chance?

thanks!

I work with identity theft victims daily. And you have done everything I recommend to people who have been, or think they will be, a fraud victim. The fraud alert on your credit is the best thing you could have done. With that fraud alert, does it instruct lenders/credit card companies to do a verbal identity check? What that will do is when they pull your credit there will be instructions on there that says, "Before extending credit, call plasticfoodwrap at <<phone number>>". Also, sign yourself up to receive your credit bureau report monthly and email alerts when your credit has been "dinged".

And even though it's been a couple months since this happened, fraudsters are notorious for laying in wait so you don't connect the dots.

I would call all of the local utility companies and put an alert that makes id required.

I had a cable bill and an electricity bill that wasn't mine. The electric bill was on my credit for a long time. This person also stole my credit card for a department store and charged $380. :(

I still get my monthly credit report and check it.

thanks for the responses!

And even though it's been a couple months since this happened, fraudsters are notorious for laying in wait so you don't connect the dots.

that's what i'd thought. the alert i put is good for only 90 days (and then i have renew it every three months, it seems), but he has my information and could use it anytime he wants.

it just occurred to me, though, what if he decided to wait for 7 years? wouldn't it be better for him to destroy my credit now and get it over with, than for me to be forever paranoid about this one mistake i made when i was stupid and desperate?

also, as i understand it: wouldn't someone who knows my full name, my birthdate, my address, and my ss number be able to request MY credit score and changes whatever information he wants to change as necessary? plus, i was looking at my old credit score report and i've noticed that most of the number of my credit cards were printed there with only the last four digits being xxxx'd.

I would call all of the local utility companies and put an alert that makes id required.

what do you mean by "local," though? i live in a place where it's fairly easy to move from one city to another (and is moving to a different state even that difficult?), and i don't think calling all local utility companies would be the most efficient approach to this--especially since i'm not even sure if he in fact is a scammer.

one scenario i've considered is that while he (or someone he knows) uses my name and real address to sign up for utilities, he uses a new phone number and a new e-mail address and arranges for the bills to be paperless only and that way i'd never get the statements--although i'm not sure how this would benefit him exactly.

My dh had his keys stolen from his gym, they stole his truck, which had his wallet in it. His license number was his SS number. He had one credit card for emergencies, and cancelled it as soon as he realized what had happened. It had already been used to fill the truck's HUGE gas tank and to buy groceries at three stores. Then, we started getting bills. This person somehow got a driver's license with his real photo and my husband's name and address. It was a nightmare. Find out NOW if you can replace your SS number. Having a fraud alert did not help us; this thief used the correct address. At the time, they did not have the option of getting a telephone call any time the card was used, a new account was requested or anything like that. This was more than 20 years ago, and it took about 5 years to straighten the mess out. Some hints; ALWAYS have a driver's license number different than your SS number. NEVER carry your social security card with you. (My husband did not, but the police told us that is the worst case scenario) Unless you are going shopping and need store credit cards, only keep one card with you for emergencies. Invest in a sturdy lock and whenever you go to a gym take the time to lock your keys and wallet in a locker, rather than leaving your keys on a pegboard by the front desk.

so i was wondering:

would it make any difference if i reported to the dmv that i lost my driver's license?

i don't want to get a new ss# since i don't want to start over again from the bottom when i don't even know if this person was an identity theft or if i'm just being paranoid.