ID Theft

Is identity theft insurance worth the price? My rental insurance company is offering idenity theft insurance up to $25,000 in lawyers fees for identity theft etc. I think the price was $40.00 a year. Is it worth it? Has it helped somebody out?

Is it too late to get identity theft insurance if your identity has already been stolen? I agree Silver. To me it's like getting full coverage on your car AFTER you have totaled it out.

where can I get information on identity theft insurance in Ontario Canada?

Identity theft? My ex left the country 2 weeks ago and all he did was to call me and tell that he has left my personal stuff[by that I mean papers with my personal information] lying all over the place.I did't know he still had anymore of my personal stuff cos I thought I had collected everything.I am so afraid of identity theft.I am thinking of taking identity theft insurance but Iam so confused.Pls help

Is identity theft insurance a waste of money?

Does anyone use Life Lock or any other identity theft insurance company? My husband is convinced that we need to get this. It costs $110 per person per year, and from what I gather, all they do is contact Experian, Transunion and Equifax and tell them that you suspect you might be at risk for identity theft. They provide these companies with 2 phone numbers provided by you. Then if something happens & your identity gets stolen, it's your responsibility to call Lifelock & tell them. If you don't, they won't go to bat for you. If you do everything they tell you to do, they will pay for the legal fees to get your credit straightened out, up to $1,000,000, but they don't reimburse any lost money. Is my understanding correct? If not, what am I missing? Wouldn't it be better to contact the 3 credit companies and put a security freeze on our credit? Yes, it's a hassle if we actually want credit, but then no one can get credit in our name, period. No hassles with laywers and ID theft insurance, because no one can get through to the credit companies.

need three countries to market identity theft insurance.? its for a project i need three countries with high identity theft. three that isn't the united states. i haven't found any info online . need to know the source where answers come from. thanks in advance.

Medical insurance fraud/Identity theft? Last night I received a letter from our insurance company letting us know that we opened an on-line account to access vital personal information. We did not open this account. It provided the user name that was established. We tried unsuccessfully to log on. We contacted customer support. My husband's ex-wife had created the account approx. 3 weeks ago. She accessed our information. She impersonated my husband to create the account by using his name, SSN, DOB and checked the box that she was him. Then she put her email address as the registered email addy. She had full access to view all benefits used for the last year. Doctor visits, labs, procedures etc. Is this some sort of privacy violation? Since she was never on this policy. The secret questions to try and obtain the password pertained to the kind of car she drives and her birthplace. Anyone out there know what this violates?

Identity Theft Rant? Does anyone else find this ironic? We’re constantly being told about identity theft; “Buy Identity Theft Insurance, Shred Your Mail, Only Use Secure Website, Lock Your File Case, Hide Your Children Under The Bed, and For Gods Sake Don’t Go Out After Dark!” OK I exaggerated on that last part but you get my point. Despite all these warnings and thousands of cases of identity theft every year, our credit card companies and banks still send out our statements every month with our card numbers plastered all over it. We know our numbers, why not print just the last four if someone has multiple accounts? Even when I sign up for paperless billing they still find some other reason to mail me something with—yet again—my numbers plastered all over it! Anyone else find this ironic? Could this be a conspiracy?

aside from credit, what is the purpose of identity theft? im a victim, but ive done all the damage control possible in terms of bank accounts and credit reports. im still wondering what other atrocities the thief could be planning against me. if my credit report is flagged and he or she tries to apply for a cell phone, medical insurance, or book a flight -- will i be notified? is that credit report alert only a defense against fiscal fraud or all cases of identity theft?

Does anyone know the music in the Farmers Insurance Group Commercial Music for the Identity Theft commercial? It sounds like Scotch-Irish rock.

Does anyone know about identity theft protection? My friend said that they are offering insurance against people stealing your identity. Have you heard about it? And where can I find more info? Thanks!

My girlfriend co-signed my pickup loan and now she is making the payments to protect her credit.? I got my girlfriend to co-sign me on my truck loan. I told her my credit was messed up due to identity theft which she believed. I told her I'd refinance the truck when the credit issue was corrected. I moved down south so she doesn't know where I am but she pays anyway and the car is insured through her policy. She was a fat load who was never gonna lose weight and kept nagging me about my drinking and other women. It was so annoying, I'm gonna let her finish the loan. There are only 22 months left. Is her insurance still going to be good out of state for awhile?

Democrats: what should be our priorties this time out? I watch, in stunned disbelief, as once again the more liberal factions within the Democratic party demand to have their banners at the front of the parade. It is utter childishness, and a certain formula for ultimate defeat, to wave the banners of gay rights, immigration reform, gun control, women's issues, racial issues while this country is in very real danger from enemies of freedom, both foreign and domestic. The gargantuan banking and insurance industries are being allowed to commit what amounts to theft of our very identities while lawmakers provide them shields of immunity. Our right to privacy is being now routinely violated with impugnity in the name of commerce. Our civil rights are being thrown on the bonfires of fear in a blind panic to protect us out of existence. Our schools have become little more than indoctrination camps, where the only diversity not celebrated, but openly rebuked, is diversity of opinion. Orwell's "newspeak" is now codified in our laws . . . . . . . and, so, I ask you: is it time to rethink our priorities, unite under one banner, and throw all our efforts behind winning the next presidential election?

Identity theft? I think someone has stolen my husband's identity. He had an attempt to use his credit card last week and yesterday we had a message on our landline to ring back some loan company regarding his online application - of course he never made one. When we phoned them back they said they couldn't give us any information unless we gave them his national insurance number!! The company in question were called "Pounds til payday". We also received a letter addressed to some unknown person at our address, again it was a loan company. I rang them and they said according to their records that person's account had not been used since last year, maybe they had moved since then. I've lived here 7 years! I told her that something dodgy was going on and she just said she wouldn't send anymore correspondance to my address and if I was concerned then phone the police. I WAS concerned so I DID phone the police and all I was given was a reference number! What else can we do? I know now we have logged it with the police and they're aware of it if anything else happens it should be nothing to worry about as they should deal with it but we feel violated, it's almost like someone's broken into my house and I don't trust anyone anymore. Surely there is more that we can do but to sit back and wait for the next attempt to fraudulently gain money under my husband's name? They bank have already cancelled his card and we are waiting for a new one. I am more concerned about people getting other credit in his name rather than using his existing accounts, the bank have been really good as it was them that alerted us to it in the first place.

Another question on bankruptcy....? I am considering bankruptcy after failure to pay off debts. The debts are not from careless spending--a huge part of the debt is a mortgage to a home that I lost during hurricane wilma and didn't have proper insurance coverage. Also, there is debt from a fraud/identity theft situation that was never resolved and can't be at this point. I'm not sure how to tell if I am eligible for a chapter 7. I have tried debt consolidation, restructuring the mortgage, etc. That is not an option at this point either since the mortgage is to a home that no longer exists. I would just like to know what happens if you do not have any assets to give up during bankruptcy. Also, I live with my boyfriend and he has his own assets and belongings.....they wouldn't take his possessions since we are not legally bound in any way....right? Or am I wrong? I'm just looking for any general advice on bankruptcy....I posted a question before and all I recieved was answers about debt consolidation. Thank you. Okay, for all of you that didnt thoroughly read my question: I already contacted credit counselors and agencies and debt consolidation companies. None of them are able to help me....really. I appreciate your help and the time you took to answer, but I am looking for legit answers on bankruptcy, not credit counseling.

Do I need to worry about identity theft? Someone stole nothing but my registration and insurance card out of my car. I made a police report. Do i need to freeze my credit or put a fraud alert on it?

During open enrollment, std (short term disability) was not shown as an option...? During annual open enrollment, I recieved an employee open enrollment kit, which consisted of 3 pages outlining the various options of coverage. Of those were medical, dental, and vison of course and supplemental benefits, which included accident, critical illness, legal, pet, and identity theft. I showed no options of short or long term disability, and now that I inquire about them, my HR rep is telling me it is too late, and that it was listed inside the enrollment kit. Well, clearly it is not. Does ltd or std fall under accident insurance?? Does my employer have to allow me to enroll in either even if the deadlines have passed since it was never an option to begin with??

Should "amnesty" begin and end with illegal immigration??? Seeing as we're in the mood to be gracious ... how about amnesty for crimes such as tresspassing or breaking and entering or identity theft. Who needs laws anyways .. we'll just obey the ones that are convenient for us. How about medical bills we owe, maybe we should forget about health insurance altogether, this is a rich country someone will pick up the tab somewhere. Why should the gravy train stop there? Maybe the IRS would like to forgive us all our back taxes, or maybe even refund us what we paid last year .... certainly they'd never miss it. The list goes on and on, but lastly what about those who stood their time in line, paid their fees, filled out all the forms, and submitted themselves to the lengthy immigration process just to be here. I guess there's a sucker born every minute huh? Maybe the government can even set up a program to loan illegals $5000, with convenient repayment terms. Think about it!!! Another thought ... one of the first orders of business should be to issue lay off notices to all of those annoying border patrol people and customs agents at land, sea and air crossings. The idea of enforcing borders is pure avarice in any case and the cost savings could be used for more social programs or perhaps a public education campaign to sensitize the American people on issues and concerns relevant to the average illegal immigrant and how we can all work together to adjust ourselves to their cultural preferences. For those of you who think this is a racial/nationality issue, get over yourselves. No particular race/nationality was mentioned in this question. I too am an immigrant, but one who respects the law and this country enough to fill out the paperwork, pay the fees and wait in line.

iDENTITY INSURANCE ??? I was wondering if I could get I dentity theft insurance just for extra security.

Identity theft...What do you do when you find someone has a car registered in your name? I don't know if they used my social or old insurance or what, but someone out there has a car registered in my name (in a different state,) and their parking fines arrived at my parents' house. The fines were made out to my maiden name and went to an address I haven't been to in over 6 years. What is the appropriate course of action here?

My 21 yr old son has racked up about $4200.00 in medical debt this yr that I have to pay out of pocket? My insurance has paid their part on seven ER visits on my son this yr. Each visit was a result of him having a seizure and injuring himself. dislocating his shoulder several times and splitting his forehead. He is in college but very stupid because all these er visits were unnecessary because he failed to take his antiseizure rx or failed to take it on schedule. I can't afford to pay my deductibles and copay. The hospitals said I can fill out a form for financial assistance but they want me to apply for welfare/medicaid and want all my personal info such as taxes or they will turn me over to a collection agency. I am leary of this because there is so much identity theft. Are there any alternatives? I am a single parent and money is tight although I am employed full time. What will the collection agency do if I can't pay.

Why Do ILLEGAL ALIENS Get To Break The LAWS And Why Do We Taxpayer Have To Pay For Them and Their Anchor Babys $90 Billion Dollars a year is spent on illegal aliens for social services by American taxpayers. http://premium.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0610/29/ldt.01.html The truth of the matter is every illegal alien has broken American laws when they snuck into the United States without permission! They broke the law! When illegal aliens stole an American’s identity like their social security cards and driver license to obtain a job. They broke the law! When illegal aliens bought fraudulent and forged documents to receive American benefits. They broke the law! The illegal aliens have been known to break some or all of these laws. 1. WELFARE Fraud is a Crime. 2. Not Paying your taxes is a Crime. 3. Working under the table is a Crime. 4. Identity Theft is a FELONY and not a victimless Crime. 5. No car insurance is a Crime. 6. Vagrancy is a Crime. 7. Driving without a Drivers License is a Crime. 8. Using stolen or fraudulent documents to vote is a Crime. 9. Using stolen or fraudulent documents to obtain a job is a Crime. 10. Using stolen or fraudulent documents to buy a house is a Crime. 11. Starting a business with stolen or fraudulent documentation is Crime. 12. Being an absconder is a Crime. 13. Putting your child in danger of the scorching heat of the desert without water or in the back of a semi-truck or in the trunk of a car, is called child endangerment and is a crime! 14. Illegal aliens don’t pay CHILD SUPPORT! Being a Dead Beat Dad is a Crime! If they aren't then why are Americans strapped with Welfare, WIC, Public Housing, Education, Medicaid for their children? 15. Over staying your Visa is a crime. 16. Entering the United States illegally is a crime. 400,000 illegal aliens did not show up for court dates for their immigration hearings. Which made them “Absconders”, that is a Crime! Instead they just thumbed their noses at the American Court System and made a mockery of our laws! That’s a Crime! If any American tried breaking any of these laws, they would find themselves in prison and have a huge fine to pay. Just using someone else’s social security card is a felony and punishable by 5 years in prison and a fine up to $ 250,000.00! Illegal aliens are guilty of MASSIVE FRAUD and THEFT!!! It is predicted that they will commit many more acts of fraud getting Amnesty too!

My wife lost her purse sort of look like wallate she had everything including SSN, Dl, ATM, insurance cards? and some money in it can someone recommend us what we should do ? Is their any precaution measurment we can take to avoid any kind of identity theft relats to her SSN or Dl i have already blocked ATM thats as far we can go in security any other ways to protect her identiy from missuse

Identity Theft by Family....? My husband's stepdad and mom took out four credit cards in his name and maxed them out and never paid a dime. We always pay cash for everything or used a credit card I had and didn't find out until 2 years later (this past summer) when we were buying a house. At that time his stepdad was dying of pancreatic cancer. We still confronted his mom about it and she said that she knew we had good jobs and could pay for the credit cards and they took them out to pay for their transmission, bills, etc. We told her if she would have asked us for help, we would have, but they didn't even tell us about the cards and now they've ruined my husbands credit! We settled with 2 companies, but still have two more. His stepdad died in October and she received an insurance settlement. When my husband asked if she would help us settle with the other 2 companies, she threw a fit and acted like we were trying to steal "her" money! Now we have decided to take legal action. What should we do first?

Natwest Advantage Gold? Is it any good, do you think? I've been with Natwest for 16 years but only on their standard current account. I've never had any trouble with them... With Advantage Gold you pay £12 a month and get mobile phone, identity theft and travel insurance, plus some other perks like preferential rates on products... The reason I'm tempted to sign up is because someone recently stole my credit card details and used them online. I'm getting the money refunded by my credit card company but it got me thinking.....

Which is better, LifeLock or LoudSiren? I'm looking into some kind of identity theft insurance, which is better? Or do you recommend something else?

is there a new possible law in state Mass or Main that citizens will need ID Theft Protection? I heard they are trying to pass a mandate to help protect citizens from Identity Theft. Ie citizens will be required to carry ID theft protection or insurance???? Im not looking on info abut ID Theft protection, I sell the protection, Im just looking for info on a possible new mandate, that Massachusets may be passing to make mandatory for its citizens.

Is there any help available for victums of idenity theft that ca help the victums recover?

How much should i save for a Scion 08? i make 365.00 every 2 weeks, and amonth that will be 730$ a month so what should i do?? + insurance i'm 18 and i've been in identity theft. please help///

Does the FDIC insure any personal funds that are lost/stolen as a result of identity theft? Just wondering if they automatically refund your monies if someone steals your identity and illegally gains access to your bank accounts or if you're just out of luck since it was not their fault. Maybe FDIC is just insurance when someone steals directly from them (not from any specific individual account)???

How to prevent Identity theft? PLEASE HELP? I lost my wallet in high school on friday right before the memorial day weekend. In it i had my Driver's license, my ID, Humana insurance, and Dental Insurance, as well a PayPal debit card too. I reported a stolen or lost card for the paypal, but I don't know what should I do for the Driver's License. When I go to their website it says that they're going to send me a duplicate. I'm scared that the founder may use this against me by getting credits and all kinds of stuff on my name some day. WHat should I do now? I tried to look for it, but after many tries and going to the lost and found and the office, I couldn't find it! Any suggestions will be good! THANK YOU

Child Tax Credits identity theft!? I have just found out that someone has accessed my child tax credit award via telephone changing my bank account to another and changing my claim from lone parent to working and asking for child care. I went to tax office in woolwich, se18, only to find them say this has happened to lots of people in the area, there were a number of people who had the same thing happening to them, some had, had extra children added to there claim and others that they were working. Has this happened to anyone else? I am totally outraged that this has been allowed to happen, I never chuck any letters away with my national insurance, etc. I have contacted itv newsdesk and am wondering what else to do? as we should have pin numbers etc when asked for our present information and circumstances to be changed by the flippin phone!

cost difference between business (s-corp) and personal car lease? I'm about to lease a car in a couple of weeks (2007 audi a4 /roughly $450/month) under my father's name (who has perfect credit)... (my credit got ruined due to identity theft--so putting it under my name isn't an option) Would it be possible to start a new business (s-corp), and qualify for the same lease under my business (even if it's only 1 week old)? What's the cost difference between a personal and business car lease? how about the cost of insurance? Basically, i want to be able to write off this lease on my taxes (because car would be used 60% for business) ... so i'm not sure if i'll even be able to do that, if the car was under my father's name, therefore the business lease would come into play.... so not sure which would be more "cost affective"... Thanks for any input on this. -ales side note: i also just became and "independent contractor" , and i am planning on starting an s-corp for better taxes.

is this identity theft? So I applied for health insurance and was denied coverage because the medical history that I provided did not match what they had. So i called them to find out why this was and they said that I was getting prescriptions filled on a regular basis. I haven't had a prescription filled in over 5 years!! so I asked them where this was happening and they informed me it was in Maryland. i live in CA and have never even been to MD. I told them this and they said that this is what came up when they ran my SSN and Date of birth and they can't just take my word that it is not me. should I be worried? what can I do to fix this? I have pulled a credit report an there is nothing out of the ordinary

Should I purchase Identity Theft? I lost my ssn card a few days ago, so I applied for a new one, and I also put a fraud alert with the 3 credit bureaus, BUT I was reading this Protection Plan they offer for $15 a month and I was wondering, is it a good idea to sing up for it? They give you a $20,000 insurance policy with no limits on how often you check your credit reports and they also monitor any BIG changes in your credit....So if you have any experience or input in this matter, I would greatly appreciate your comments!!!

Can a wife be held accountable for opening credit card accounts in her husbands name without his consent? My brother is at the beginnings of a divorce and his lovely wife *sarcasim* opened over 4 credit cards in his name without his knowing. Among other acts of deception including marrying him for health insurance to take care of a pregnancy and a child that she lied and said was his and taking money to pay her bills and then never paying them and then he later would have to pay them again........can he file for marriage fraud and identity theft?

Does anybody know how to stop junk mail? I get so much junk mail, it is ridiculous. I get more junk mail than bills. Sometime I will have a mail box full of junk mail and no bills. The no bills part I enjoy. I get tons of credit card applications, warranty applications, accidental death insurance applications, life insurance applications and, coupons. I am getting hired of shredding this stuff. I have to shred the applications because someone might commit identity theft. The biggest thing I am afraid of is the mailman putting that mail in someone else’s mailbox.

Is it illegial to fake your own death? I was having a fight with 2 friends, and it was about the legality of faking your own death. Obviously, if you gain any money (ie Insurance Fraud), commit Identity Theft, desecrate a body, dodge any debts, or child-payments, get someone blamed for your murder, or do Anything against the law, then it's illegial. Pretend none of those things happen. It boiled down to this scenario: Joe has no outstanding debts, has never been married, and has no children. Joe pretends to be kidnapped. His friend Mac helps out. Mac sends several letters to Joe's family, demanding a ransom and threatening Joe's safety. (Mac has no intention of collecting ransom or hurting Joe.) After a few days, Mac stops, and Joe is never heard from again. Joe's family assume Joe has been killed. Joe continues to use his regular identification and pays taxes. Is this scenario illegial, or just a nasty trick? -Hoping someone in-the-know will settle this argument.

Concerned that I might become victim of Identity Theft/Fraud. How to protect? Additional details are below:? I sent a completed application to Bank of America to open a new Brokerage Acct with a copy of my passport, copy of my driver license, my social security number, my checking acct no and bank routing number by fax. Bank of America said they have not received the faxed documents. I am really concerned that if these documents fall in wrong hand, it can misused for any purpose. I am 100% sure that the Bank received the fax since I have fax confirmation receipt. Can you please advise me on the followings? I will close my bank account. But the submitted documents can be misused for getting loans and credit cards etc. How can I protect my self against this? Is there any insurance available? I really want to complain against Bank of america since the bank is taking this lightly and hesitant in doing any investigation of this issue. I am just a small customer which means nothing to the bank. Is there any organization where I can submit this complaint against this bank?

If I know who stole my credit card number...what can I do? Today we were the victims of identity theft. We filed a police report, placed fraud alert on our credit reports and of course cancelled the debit card in which was involved. The detective at the police station was able to find the name of the people, since they ordered clothing at a major retailer and so I actually have the name and address and phone number of the jerks who did it. Can I pursue legal action? Most people never find out who does this...but I have the freaking couples address! What can I do legally and is it worth it? Total amount lost is a little over $1000 cold hard cash...as it was our debit card direct from our account. Luckily we have identity theft insurance but the deductible is still $250. Help!

Can employers force you to take their free insurance? Three years ago, when I was first hired, I was given the option and I opted out (even signed the paperwork). My husband's benefits were much better and I do go to the doctor on a regular basis. Friday, I received an insurance card from them and was told that it was free and that they had to have 100% participation in order for the company to get their benefits. They can't opt me out until 2007 and now I have a higher co-pay and a out-of-pocket deductible to meet. How can they do that? I haven't signed anything and they used my social security number without my knowledge. As far as I'm concerned, that's identity theft! I have two doctor appt's that I can't miss. I have been so upset. Any thoughts?

Is it possible for an American Social Security number to be identical to a Canadian Social Insurance number? Apparently, I was the victim of identity theft. However, I was informed that it was not theft, but a mix-up in the system. Someone in Canada with my social applied for credit. It was ran in the U.S. system, rather than the Canadian. I would like to know if this is true, or if someone is blowing smoke up my...

Will a "Fraud Alert" prevent my auto insurance to be renewed? Hi, I want to put a "fraud alert" on my credit to prevent possible identity theft. I am wondering if my insurance company can still check my credit history after I put that alert. I am concerned that they cannot check the history and they don't renew my policy or maybe increase my premium. I appreciate if you can advise.

What is with the cutsieness about being victimized by identity theft in the media? People who perpetrate or facilitate this crime should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law, and this 'revictimizaion' of the victim needs legislative scrutiny, possibly considered as a hate crime against people who have already been victimized. Since when do we make fun of victims? Commercials with retarded jingles about how someone has to work in a sh*t hole or drive a POS because they were victimized and so forth? This is self-promotional BS from credit bureaus, online marketers, and endless-niche-searching insurance companies. Why stop here? why not make fun of the casualties of war? or victims of serial killers and rapists? Furthermore, why don't we let the serial killers and rapists themselves do the mocking? People need to wake up and reject this kind of garbage on the airwaves.

How can I stop receiveing prescreened credit & insurance offers by mail, and have it sent to my email instead? I don't want to miss out on the offers, but I'm scared of identity theft.

Are you ready for the National Real ID? Invasion of privacy? Identity theft? Concerned? The US government has developed a Real ID that will contain all of your personal data in the near future - prescriptions and medical records, all licensing, etc. It will eventually have a chip that can track you wherever you are - sounds a little like Sci-Fi or maybe like the movies "The Net" or "Enemy of the State". Most states have refused to accept this because it will allow the government to control the lives of the citizens but do nothing to protect us from illegals. Illegals will still be working for cash, not paying taxes and drinking while driving without insurance, continuing drug smuggling, selling children for sex, etc. Why not have a scanable card that just has the current information on the card - like for your driver's licence - only embed them with chips that lead back to the issuing government agent? This way if someone has a US card illegally, it can be traced back to the agent who issued the card. Let us penalize those guilty of crimes, not the taxpayers! burdawg, I agree with you that we need to be able to separate the citizens from illegal invaders in our country - just not at the expense of the citizens. We already have driver's licenses or state IDs. Our national ID is our Social Security number. This is what is being abused. Currently our SS# is on paper - easy to replicate. Now what they were all on a plastic cards that had your basic information in it - full name and hidden SS#. The only way that the number would show up is by scanning the card at a government location like a driver's licensing facility. The government agent who issued the SS card at the government facility would not be able to release the card to you until they first swiped the card which would then record the agent issuing the card. This would prevent using fake documents to get a license and enable us to trace back to the issuing agents for fraudulent activities where the blame should be. http://www.gohunter08.com/ insighthere, I did not know that something similar existed. What I do not like about the card you mentioned is that the government is better able to monitor people. I never want the government to have access to every little thing about me - nor do I want it floating around in cyberspace to be used to threaten my freedom. We really have to be cautious about how much private information is available to the government to prevent government control. Think of the Nazis. What would it be like today if the same thing happened through medical cards - easy to identify any number of ailments that might be a drain to the system and eliminate the burden. No thanks. I'm not ready for that kind of access by just anyone. A simple chip tracing back to the issuing agent will work just fine for me - but nothing personal about me on that card.

is this considered identity theft? daughter stealing from mom? SAY JILL WAS PUT IN CHARGE OF HER ELDERY WIDOWED MOTHERS FINANCES. MOM HAS ALZEIHMERS. JILL IS AN AUTHORIZED SIGNER ON HER MOTHERS ACCT AND JILL IS SUPPOSED TO SEE TO IT THAT MOMS BILLS ARE PAID INCLUDING LIFE INSURANCE AND BURIAL PLOT, RENT, UTILITIES AND PRESCRIPTION COSTS MONTHLY AND THE MONEY THAT IS LEFT OVER IS TO BE LEFT IN THE ACCT FOR MOM.MOM GETS ENOUGH MONEY TO HANDLE THESE EXPENSES FROM SOCIAL SECURITY AND NEVER HAD A PROBLEM PAYING THESE BILLS BEFORE HER DIAGNOSIS.ITS BEEN A YR SINCE JILL TOOK CONTROL AND MOMS OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS HAVE FOUND THAT MOM IS $1500 IN DEBT WITH UTILITY COMPANIES, MOM HAS BEEN EVICTED BECAUSE RENT WAS NOT PAID AND HER LIFE INSURANCE IS ABOUT TO LAPSE AND HER BURIAL PLOT IS ABOUT TO BE LOST BECAUSE OF NON PAYMENT.THE ONLY EXPENSES THAT WERE PAID WERE MOMS $25MONTHLY PRESCRIPTION COSTS AND AN OCCASIONAL L. INSURANCE PAYMENT.MOMS FAMILY HAS BANK STATEMENTS WITH CHARGES THAT HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH MOM, THESE CHARGES WERE MADE BY JILL AND MOM HAS NEVER RECIEVED COMPANSATION.ALSO EVERY MONTH MOM WOULD HAVE OVERDRAFT FEES ON HER ACCT FOR CHARGES MADE BY JILL THAT HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH MOM.ISNT THIS A FORM OF IDENTITY THEFT? SORRY IT WAS SO LONG, I JUST DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO FOR MY GRANNY. MY AUNT HAS TAKEN EVERYTHING FROM HER, SHE DOESNT EVEN HAVE CLOTHES NOW. THE ACCT HAS BEEN CLOSED AND JILL HAS NO ACCESS NOW. WHEN MY GRANDMA PUT JILL ON THE ACCT SHE DIDNT KNOW WHAT SHE WAS SIGNING OVER.

I heard that someone created a false Medical insurance card, how can they get away with it? For it to work, does it not mean they stole someone else's ID? How would it work? How would they conceal the identity theft from the citizen victim...by changing the mailing address of bills? So if a consumer is paying insurance but is not very sickly, they could go for years being a victim and not really know it?

Why would someone steal your vehicle registration and proof of insurance? Why would anyone want to steal that information. I've heard for identity theft and I've also heard they can get enough information to have keys made for my car and a fake title. What do you think they can do, how can I protect myself, and how can I catch this person in their attempt?

How do I get someone to move on with their life and leave me alone? I had a relationship that lasted less than 2 weeks - unfortunately a child resulted from this relationship. The blood test did not dismiss me as the father - I have paid child support, provided health insurance and reimbursed the mother for my share of what the insurance doesn't cover - always paid, never late. I have no relationship with the child and do not contact the mother other than paying the bills because the mother has physically attacked me and is a complete psycho. She has done everything to make my life hell. She has not given up on the idea that somehow we're a family. She pretends to be my ex-wife and is now using my name to open medical bills but doesn't pay them even when I've reimbursed her for them, which has affected my credit - she has the bills sent to her house and doesn't forward them to me. I'm going for identity theft but don't know what else to do. How do I get her to leave me alone and get on with her life? This has been going on for 15+ years. Thx!

Charged family members credit card 15 gradn withouth his knowledge? I charged a family members credit card about 15 grand wihtout his knowldege. I lived in New JErsey. He did not want to be responisble for this charge . HE reported incident to police . I guess it is now conisdered identity theft. THe credit card company refunded teh meony back to card and closed account he never has to pay for it. Now teh police know who made teh unauthorized charges. Meanwhile i moved to europe so i woudnt be questioned cause im assuming i would go to jail for this as i used another persons card to make charges wihtout authorization. Is it ever possible for me to come back into the US? Lets say 10 years from now. And im pretty sure that The police are not goin gto come after me in europe if im not mistaken for a 15 thousand dollar charge that was paid off by credit card insurance company.

Now for the Mexican population in the U.S. or pro? Mexican people (illegal Mexicans I mean), please tell us YOUR views on 1. Why are you here demonstrating instead of in Mexico demonstrating for your rights? 2. Why is it okay for you to steal identities of people in order for you to work? That is something we are very against - identity theft. 3. Why is it okay for you to work and take home your ENTIRE paycheck when we (tax payers) give money to the government out of our checks (a lot). 4. Why is it you can get free medical because you aren't going to pay your bills and you don't have insurance - where the hospitals have to now cut down on everything because of the high cost of indigent care? Please give us a reason to be on your side. This is more than one question. I am personally not against you - I asked a question earlier which argued some of these points. Now, I want to hear your side. Make us feel better about you being here and more accepting of you.

credit dispute oddity? I filed for disputes on all 3 CRA,however I received a letters from all 3 stating that they received my request for identity theft and has placed some 90 day fraud alert on them.I never reported my identity as being stolen,just wanted to clear a simple medical dispute that should have been covered by my insurance company. Is this common to receive these letters during disputes or is that their way of extending a dispute or something else?

If the American dollar plummets far enough will illegal aliens head home ? Would they be leaving this country in financial disarray? When you read about the amounts of money being sent out of the United States and lost to our economy you must realize that the money you are reading about is money that is not being earned by Americans or by lawful immigrants. This is because the Americans and those aliens who are lawfully entitled to work in the United States have been displaced by illegal aliens who are willing to work for substandard wages.Presidential elections are eager to provide amnesty and thus more incentives for still more illegal aliens to run our nation's borders and drain still more money out of our economy. They will do this through remittances and other means of sending money back home. They will do this when they show up in the emergency rooms of hospitals across our nation demanding medical treatment without medical insurance. The criminal element of this massive influx of illegal aliens will injure and kill more victims in our country destroying lives and the lives of family members of the victims of those crimes. Some of the crimes will also result in property losses and in fraud (identity theft is the fastest growing white collar crime in America today and is often motivated by organized rings that sell these stolen identities to illegal aliens seeking illegal employment. Interestingly with all of the interviews that were conducted in the Yahoo article, not a single interview was conducted with an American family to find out what the impact of the decline of the dollar has had on the average American family. Also worth noting that in their article about illegal aliens their immigration status is never even raised and the term alien is never used. http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20080129/ts_csm/aremittance

Any ideas on what I can do? I had a relationship that lasted less than 2 weeks - unfortunately a child resulted from this relationship. The blood test did not dismiss me as the father - I have paid child support, provided health insurance and reimbursed the mother for my share of what the insurance doesn't cover - always paid, never late. I have no relationship with the child and do not contact the mother other than paying the bills because the mother has physically attacked me and is a complete psycho. She has done everything to make my life hell. She has not given up on the idea that somehow we're a family. She pretends to be my ex-wife and is now using my name to open medical bills but doesn't pay them even when I've reimbursed her for them, which has affected my credit - she has the bills sent to her house and doesn't forward them to me. I'm going for identity theft but don't know what else to do. How do I get her to leave me alone and get on with her life? This has been going on for 15+ years. Thx!

Jail time??? My boyfriends sister and her soon to be ex husband are going through a nasty divorce. About three months ago her husband moved out and started cancelling everything...car insurance, health insurance on her oldest (15) of her 4 sons who is sick with lymes disease and fibromyalgia. He downgraded the phone service also so she didn't have long distance. She called the phone company to get the service back and put into her own name since he was no longer living there. They told her that he would have to call to make those changes. Sooooo my boyfriend acted as him and called and used the last 4 digits of his SS # to change the account into his sisters name. The next day her ex found out that the service had not been cancelled and he called the police. They both got arressted and charged with identity theft in the 3rd degree. They have never been in trouble before this. Do you think that they will get jail time? The max sentence is up to 1 year in jail and or $1000 fine.. Please help...

I have no family no money and soon no place to stay. Where should I start? I refuse to become religious because that's what got me into this mess to start with. If you tell me to pray or ask God this or that I will just ignore your answer. With that out of the way. I find myself at the end of my rope. I have nothing but a bunch of junk that I can't get hardly any money for. I have no future and nothing but a painful past that seems to follow me anywhere I go. i can't drive due to a problem with identity theft, also two kids smashed up my car and motorcycle while I had canceled my insurance to try to save money and sort out my problem. I wish I could join the air force like I wanted to when I finished high school. They wouldn't let me because of a health issue. I do own a 12 gauge shot gun. I'm thinking if a solution doesn't come fast enough that I will use it to end my life. Since no one else has ever thought about me before maybe my last act on this earth will be of me doing something for myself.

I need some advice on some felony issues i am going up agaisnt.? I got arrested for theft 3, fraud use of a credit card and identity theft. I got arrested in December 2007 and when i went to my arraignment mu case hasn't been filed. I got an attorney and my case still hasn't been file. My question is will it look good in the courts eye that i have a good full time job, and if i go to jail i will loose my job. I pay for insurance truck payment and i use to pay for college. And i have no prior record before this incident. I just need some advice. I need to stay out of jail to keep my job. I have the 500$ to pay restitution.(500 dollars is what was spent on the credit card) Please if i could get some good adivice and good words that would be great. and i don't need rude adivce either. I'm sorry for what i did and i didn't have my head on straight. So give me helpful and iseful advice. thank you

How Can I Find Out If I Owe Any Money To These Following..? Last year...I believe I called some people who were responsible at working on "identity theft protection plans" for people who are worried about getting their identity stolen. I applied to it and paid the admission for the first month. I am not so sure if I have cancelled the plan a week later or not =-/ (I was on a busy schedule) I don't even recall what their companys name was and I don't have their phone number. I only assume that I am no longer a member and don't owe any money due to the fact that I am not receiving any payments or bills. How can I find out? Any advice/suggestions? I also applied to some life insurance plan, but I am still unsure whether or not if I cancelled it. How can I find out if I am still applied into these plans without knowing any number or company name. I just don't want to be in debt 10 years later, knowing that I have been applied to all these plans without any payment/bill. I haven't received any bill/payment in the mail nor any phone calls.

How Can I Find Out If I owe Any Money To The Following..? Last year...I believe I called some people who were responsible at working on "identity theft protection plans" for people who are worried about getting their identity stolen. I applied to it and paid the admission for the first month. I am not so sure if I have cancelled the plan a week later or not =-/ (I am terrible at remembering) I don't even recall what their companys name was and I don't have their phone number. I only assume that I am no longer a member and don't owe any money due to the fact that I am not receiving any payments or bills. How can I find out? Any advice/suggestions? I also applied to some life insurance plan, but I am still unsure whether or not if I cancelled it. How can I find out if I am still applied into these plans without knowing any number or company name. I just don't want to be in debt 10 years later, knowing that I have been applied to all these plans without any payment/bill. I haven't received any bill/payment in the mail nor any phone call

How Can I FInd Out If I Owe Any Money To Companies? Last year...I believe I called some people who were responsible at working on "identity theft protection plans" for people who are worried about getting their identity stolen. I applied to it and paid the admission for the first month. I am not so sure if I have cancelled the plan a week later or not =-/ (I was on a busy schedule) I don't even recall what their companys name was and I don't have their phone number. I only assume that I am no longer a member and don't owe any money due to the fact that I am not receiving any payments or bills. How can I find out? Any advice/suggestions? I also applied to some life insurance plan, but I am still unsure whether or not if I cancelled it. How can I find out if I am still applied into these plans without knowing any number or company name. I just don't want to be in debt 10 years later, knowing that I have been applied to all these plans without any payment/bill. I haven't received any bill/payment in the mail nor any phone calls.

Should i be worried? My cell phone has recently been getting a lot of wrong numbers. they're all from health insurance companies responding to a request from someone named micheal. (i forget whhat his last name was) could this be some form of identity theft or is it just a mistake?

Need help proofreading? “The Government’s Response to Hurricane Katrina” Hurricane Katrina was the most destructive natural disaster to ever hit America. Over 90,000 square miles of land was destroyed, about the size of the United Kingdom. In Mississippi, the storm obliterated coastal communities and left thousands destitute. New Orleans was overwhelmed by flooding. Along the Gulf Coast, tens of thousands suffered without basic essentials for almost a week. More than 1500 people died and not just from the storm alone. Suffering continued in the days and weeks after the storm passed because of the government’s failure at all levels to plan, prepare for and respond aggressively to the storm. In this paper, will explain how the government’s response to Hurricane Katrina greatly affected the nation and the many factors that show the government’s inability to plan, prepare for, and respond to national catastrophes lead to one of the most talked about event in history. The first factor is the long term warnings that went unheeded. Before Hurricane Katrina, government officials knew for forty years of the potentially devastating threat of a catastrophic hurricane to the Gulf region and the destruction it could cause. Government officials had plenty of time to prepare for a catastrophic hurricane but refused to heed the warnings of past hurricanes to the gulf coast. For example when New Orleans experienced flooding in some areas of remarkably similar proportions from Hurricane Betsy in 1965, and when Hurricane Camille devastated the Gulf Coast in 1969 (NOAA/ National Weather Services). When Hurricane George hit the Gulf in 1998, the state of Louisiana to ask FEMA for assistance with catastrophic hurricane planning but little was accomplished in the six years of planning. With six years of planning, the government should have had time to develop and test a catastrophic hurricane plan. In 2004, numerous experts and governmental officials had been anticipating an increase in violent hurricanes, and New Orleans’ special and growing vulnerability to catastrophic flooding due to changing geological and other conditions. If these facts were known, why weren’t plans made in order to prevent a disaster such as this from happening? It seems as though that officials at every level of government did not appear to grasp the magnitude of the storm’s potential for destruction before it made landfall despite strongly worded advisories from the National Hurricane Center (NHC) and personal warnings from NHC Director Max Mayfield. Mayfield was so worried about Hurricane Katrina that he called the governors of Louisiana, Mississippi, and the mayor of New Orleans to discuss the effect Hurricane Katrina might have on their regions. Mayfield even talked about the force of Katrina during a video conference call to President Bush at his ranch in Crawford, Texas (Lush). If Mayfield was so worried about the effects of the storm, why weren’t his advice heeded and the necessary precautions taken to reduce the effects of Hurricane Katrina? The second factor was the terrible decisions in the days before the hurricane hit. Some coastal towns in Mississippi went to extraordinary lengths to get citizens to evacuate, including sending people door-to-door to convince people to move out of harm’s way. While New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin only orders a mandatory evacuation of all residents from the city of New Orleans. Yet instead of asking for assistance to help residents who lacked the means to leave the city, he orders the Superdome to be opened as a shelter of last resort. The Superdome proved to be more like a prison than a shelter. More than 20,000 people were forced to reside inside the Superdome without working plumbing, food, water, and other necessities for nearly two weeks. Yet Ray Nagin decided that this was appropriate shelter for those people instead of evacuating everyone out of the city. Hurricane Katrina’s devastating effects were felt before the storm even reached the Gulf Coast on August 29, 2005. In the Gulf of Mexico, Hurricane Katrina battered the offshore energy infrastructure and forced the evacuation of more than 75 percent of the Gulf’s 819 manned oil platforms. Two days before landfall, U.S. energy companies estimated that the approaching storm had already reduced Gulf of Mexico oil production by more than a third. The government knew that if Hurricane Katrina had that much force to evacuate 819 manned oil platforms, that the havoc it would reap on the New Orleans would be devastating. Despite the understanding of the Gulf Coast’s vulnerability to hurricane devastation, officials braced for Katrina with full awareness of critical deficiencies in their plans and enormous holes in their resources. While Katrina’s destructive force could not be denied, state and local officials did not have enough of the resources at their disposal. And even though the Governors of the three affected states requested, and President Bush issued, emergency declarations before the Hurricane hit, none of it actually prepared citizens for what they were about to experience. Another terrible decision was the lack of transportation and supplies. FEMA failed to approach other federal agencies for help with transportation to ensure that the city of New Orleans and the state of Louisiana had the means to evacuate their citizens. The City of New Orleans was unprepared to help people evacuate, as many buses from the city’s own fleet were submerged, while at the same time officials had not arranged in advance for drivers for those buses that were available. On Monday, August 29, 2005, Governor Blanco asked FEMA Director Michael Brown for buses, and Brown assured the state the same day that 500 buses were en route to assist in the evacuation of New Orleans and would arrive within hours. In spite of Brown’s assurances and the state’s continued requests over the course of the next two days, FEMA did not direct the U.S. Department of Transportation to send buses until very early on Wednesday, two days after Hurricane Katrina hit and the levees had broken, and the buses did not begin to arrive at all until Wednesday evening and not in significant numbers until Thursday (Millholom). By the time the government realized that they needed the buses to help get people out of the city, the levees had broken and most of the people who they intended to rescues had died or were either trapped on top of roofs on untraveled, flooded streets. New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin could have prevented many deaths had he gotten people to drive the local buses through the residential areas to save the elderly and the people who had no way out. FEMA could have arraigned for buses from other towns close to New Orleans to rescue the citizens. Yet, these ideas were not thought of when they had two days before the levees broke. The government also failed to communicate properly throughout the entire Hurricane Katrina dilemma. The Homeland Security Operations Center (HSOC) was suppose to provide information about the disaster to decision-makers including the Secretary and the President but failed to create a system to identify and acquire all available, relevant information, and as a result situational awareness was deeply flawed. Yet reliable information on such vital developments as the levee failures, the extent of flooding, and the presence of thousands of people in need of life-sustaining assistance at the New Orleans Convention Center did not reach the White House, Secretary Chertoff or other key officials for hours, and in some cases more than a day. FEMA Director Michael Brown, then in Louisiana, contributed to the problem by refusing to communicate with Secretary Chertoff opting instead to pass information directly to White House staff (Taylor). Moreover, even though senior DHS officials did receive on the day of landfall numerous reports that should have led to an understanding of the increasingly dire situation in New Orleans, many indicated they were not aware of the crisis until sometime Tuesday morning. DHS was slow to recognize the scope of the disaster and that FEMA had become overwhelmed. On the day after landfall, DHS officials were still struggling to determine the “ground truth” about the extent of the flooding despite the many reports it had received about the catastrophe. Government officials did not grasp the need to act on the less-than-complete information that is to be expected in a disaster. DHS leaders did not become fully engaged in recovery efforts until Thursday, when in Deputy Secretary Michael Jackson’s words, they “tried to kick it up a notch”; after that, they did provide significant leadership within DHS and FEMA as well as coordination across the federal government. But this effort should have begun sooner. This effort should have been done when they realized Hurricane Katrina was coming to destroy New Orleans. They had enough time to investigate the reports that were given or to go and get a firsthand look at the destruction that Hurricane Katrina had caused. Another factor was the government’s knowledge that the levees could not withstand a level 4 or 5 hurricane. The levees which prevented New Orleans from being turned into a swamp were built to only withstand Category 3 hurricanes. Officials have known for years that the levees could fail under the pressures of a Category 4 or 5 hurricanes but did nothing to reinforce the levees (CNN). There have been many different sources acknowledging the affects the hurricane would have on the levees. In 2002 the New Orleans Times-Picayune ran a five-part series exploring the vulnerability of the city (The New Orleans Times). The newspaper and other news media as well, specifically addressed the possibility of massive floods drowning residents, destroying homes and releasing toxic chemicals throughout the city. Reuters reported that in 2004, more than 40 state, local and volunteer organizations practiced a scenario in which a massive hurricane struck and levees were breached, allowing water to flood New Orleans. Under the simulation, called "Hurricane Pam," the officials "had to deal with an imaginary storm that destroyed more than half a million buildings in New Orleans and forced the evacuation of a million residents," the Reuters report said (Kahn). If government officials knew that the levees could not stand a Category 4 or 5 hurricanes, then why wasn’t anything done to reinforce the strength of the levees. If nothing could be done to reinforce the wall, why wasn’t a secondary barrier put in place in case of the levees actually breakage? The government had enough time to do something about the levees but instead choose to ignore that it was a structural problem. If the problem had been fixed, many lives and homes would have been spared. Government has since then fixed the levees. Almost a year ago the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers declared that it had restored New Orleans' levees and floodwalls to pre-Hurricane Katrina strength. But yet again another storm weaker than Hurricane Katrina can destroy the levees once again. The new levees sit atop steel sheet piles driven 20 feet (6 meters) into the ground. The piles are long interlocking wall sections that retain water and transfer pressure deeper into the ground, where the soil is more stable (Bourne). But water from holes in the canal bed, excavated before Katrina or scoured by the storm, may be seeping under the barrier through permeable layers of sand and silt. Thus again making the levees a vulnerable target for the next hurricane. The government has spent 3 billion dollars on these levees only to have them possibly torn down again (MSNBC). What was the purpose of fixing the levees if they were still going to have major structural flaws in them that could possibly cause dozens of lives to be lost again? Another major factor is the law enforcement problem that New Orleans faced after Hurricane Katrina. Law enforcement outside the Superdome and the Convention Center was a major problem, and was fueled by several contributing factors, including multiple statements by government officials inflaming the public’s perception of the lawlessness in New Orleans (New York Times). Without effective law enforcement, real or imagined safety threats interrupted every aspect of the response. So without Fearing for their personal safety, medical and search and rescue teams withdrew from their missions. FEMA and commercial vendors of critical supplies often refused to make deliveries until military escorts could be arranged. In fact, there was some lawlessness, yet for every actual act there were rumors of dozens more, leading to widespread and inaccurate reporting that severely complicated a desperate situation (Dyson). Some were looters who were stealing just to be stealing but others were looting for the supplies such as water and food that the vendors refused to bring because of other crime or speculation. Unfortunately, local, state, and federal officials did little to stanch this rumor flow. Police presence on the streets was inadequate, in part because in a matter of hours Katrina turned the New Orleans police department from protectors of the public to victims of the storm as well. Nonetheless, most New Orleans police officers appear to have reported for duty, many setting aside fears about the safety of their families or the status of their homes just to maintain order amidst the chaos. The storm also laid waste to much of the city’s police headquarters and several district offices, along with hundreds of vehicles, rounds of ammunition, and uniforms were all destroyed within the first two days of landfall. Because of this reason, the government shipped out 15, 000 soldiers to enforce the law and maintain public safety (USA TODAY). Crime eventually died down and this was one area that the government actually accomplished something and did it correctly without hesitation. Another factor was the terrible living conditions that people faced while stranded in New Orleans. Over 20,000 people took refuge in Louisiana’s Superdome under unbearable living conditions. The halls reeked of urine and feces were everywhere, a sign of the broken plumbing system; food and water supplies were diminished; and crime ran rampant in the Superdome also known as the “Terrordome” (Brinkley). The Superdome was so packed, that thousands were turned away daily that were seeking refuge from the rising, polluted floodwaters. Many people who were trapped in the city due to the flooding from the breaking of the levees. Flooding in New Orleans drove thousands of survivors to attics and rooftops to await rescue. Some people were trapped in attics and nursing homes and drowned as the dirty waters rose around them. Others escaped only by chopping their way through roofs. Others were sleeping on bridges, cars, and any place they could find that the water could not reach them. The government failed to provide these people with appropriate shelter and when they did provide shelter, the living conditions were deplorable. They failed to provide them with enough food to make sure that they were well fed and not mal-nourished. While authorities recognized the need to begin search-and-rescue missions, other aspects of the response were hindered by a failure to quickly recognize the dimensions of the disaster. Not only did they face terrible living conditions in New Orleans but during the after math as well. FEMA did not even provide adequate temporary relocated homes for many victims who got displaced because of Hurricane Katrina. FEMA offer these people, some of whom lost 300,000 dollar homes, with trailers to live in. Others were stuck in hotels across the U.S. But that didn’t last long, FEMA terminated their contract with the hotels and many people found themselves homeless once again (New York Times). The government didn’t even have a system in place for those who lost their personal information. Many victims found it difficult to reconstruct their shattered lives. In many cases, they had either lost or forgotten basic documents, such as insurance information, birth certificates, and marriage licenses, which would later prove essential to rebuilding their lives. Most of the evacuees did not have access to their medical records, which increased the risk of complications when receiving medical treatment. And many of these citizens were faced with identity theft and no way to prove if they had payed certain debts off. After the government realized that its initial response and the actions it took towards the Hurricane Katrina situation, it releases “The Federal Response to Hurricane Katrina: Lessons Learned”, an extensive review, that identifies deficiencies in the Federal government's response and lays the groundwork for transforming how the Nation - from every level of government, to the private sector, to individual citizens and communities - pursues a real and lasting vision of emergency preparedness and response (Fragos-Townsend). In conclusion, there are a lot of factors that contribute to the government’s appalling response to Hurricane Katrina and destruction that it caused. There are a lot of mixed feelings when it comes to this topic but I think the government has a lot of work to do in regards to creating and implementing a hurricane disaster program. Many things could have been done to prevent Hurricane Katrina from being one of the worst natural disasters in America but it can only provide as an example to teach the government how to be more prepared when disaster strikes. Bourne, Joel K. "National Geographic News." 6 May 2007. National Geographic. 11 March 2008 <http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/05/070506-orleans-levees.html>. Brinkley, Douglas. The Great Deluge. New York City: HarperCollins, 2006. CNN. "CNN.com." September 5 2005. CNN.com. 11 March 2008 <http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/09/03/katrina.chertoff/>. Dyson, Micheal Eric. Come Hell or High Water. New York City: Basic Civitas/ Perseus Books Group, 2006. Fragos-Townsend, Frances. The Federal Response to Hurricane Katrina: Lessons Learned. Extensive Review Report. Washington, D.C.: Homeland Security and CounterTerrorism, 2006. Kahn, Michael. "Reuters.com." 19 April 2007. Reuters.com. 11 March 2008 <http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSSIB97535720070419>. Lush, Tamara. "St. Petersburg Times Online." 30 August 2005. St. Petersburg Times Online. 11 March 2008 <http://www.sptimes.com/2005/08/30/State/For_forecasting_chief.shtml>. Millholom, Michelle. "Free Republic." 18 September 2005. Free Republic. 11 March 2008 <http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1486872/posts>. MSNBC. "MSNBC." 15 December 2005. MSNBC. 11 March 2008 <http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10480727/>. New York Times. "New York Times." 1 September 2005. New York Times. 11 March 2008 <http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/01/national/nationalspecial/01storm.html>. —. New York Times. 31 August 2006. 11 March 2008 <http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/h/hurricane_katrina/index.html?offset=60&s=oldest>. NOAA/ National Weather Services. "National Hurricane Center." 31 August 2007. National Hurricane Center. 11 March 2008 <http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/HAW2/english/history.shtml>. Taylor, Matthew. "Yahoo News." 31 September 2005. Yahoo. 11 March 2008 <http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/katrina_disaster_response>. The New Orleans Times. "The New Orleans Times." 22 September 2002. The New Orleans Times. 11 March 2008 <http://www.nola.com/katrina/>. USA TODAY. "USA TODAY." 21 June 2006. USA TODAY. 11 March 2008 <http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-06-20-national-guard-new-orleans_x.htm>.

Early pregnancy/ Abortion options? What are early symptoms of pregnancy and is it common to experience the "I just know" thing? Is loss of appetite normal? Is it normal to get really depressed over a boxed test? And about abortion...does anyone know if blue cross or kaiser cover it? Or is it strictly a clinic thing? And can anyone tell me anything about the abortion pill (how bad is the bleeding? how long does it last? any recovery/side affects?Are you okay to drive home alone afterwards?) How often are at home tests false? note: I know this is premeditated and I know many of you on here are anxious to concieve. But having a baby is not an option for me right now, I hope toget rid of it early to prevent emotional attachment. Also I am in this alone, and every aspect of my life has recently fallen apart (changed my job=no insurance for 3 months, broke up w/my guy of 6years, lost my roomates, lost my house, getting sued, identity theft,) so please dont be critical about the situation, It's not something I want to do

Can you believe this judge ruled not a crime for illegals to use someone’s identity to obtain employment ? For Lora and Jamey Costner, a $7,854 federal income tax bill is the painful indigestion that followed two unsatisfying servings of identity theft cooked up by two former Koch Foods employees... The criminal cases involving the Newport married couple and the two illegal immigrants, who IRS records indicate worked for Koch Foods, have been resolved in the court system. The bitter aftertaste that remains is the unpalatable possibility of having their wages garnished to pay tax bills on income they never earned ... "The overall burden of it all is crushing us, please help," the Costners wrote in an appeal to U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn. "We have done all we know to do." Mrs. Costner says she realized the magnitude of the problem in July when the IRS informed her that she and her husband failed to report approximately $30,000 in income they earned at Koch Foods during 2005. The Costners say it’s easy to prove they both worked at Wallace Hardware in Morristown during 2005. Relatedly, Mrs. Costner maintains it’s child’s play to prove they never worked at Koch Foods during that year. The foreshadowing for Mr. Costner materialized in April 2006 when learned that he was in danger of losing his driver’s license because of unpaid citations for speeding and driving without insurance. The traffic stop came at 3 o’clock in the morning while Mr. Costner was asleep. Also, the driver reportedly did not speak English. Police identified Mrs. Costner’s impersonator as Elizabeth Velasco Bautista, who later pleaded guilty to criminal impersonation... The interloper in Mr. Costner’s life was Douglas Valdez, according to Ellis. Ellis says Valdez avoided the identity-theft charge because a judge ruled that it was not a crime to use someone’s identity to obtain employment. The Costners remain in IRS legal limbo.http://www.citizentribune.com/news/view_sections.asp?idcategory=9&idarticle=7876 So using the judge’s identity to commit crimes would be legal too? It’s a virtual certainty now that a Cocke County married couple won’t have to pay a $7,854 IRS tax bill for income earned by two illegal immigrants at Koch Foods, sources say. Jamey and Lora Costner say the IRS had threatened to garnish their wages, despite identity-theft arrests of two former Koch Foods employees and a police detective’s affidavit stating they should not have to pay. "It’s amazing that somebody is finally listening to us," said Mrs. Costner, who worked for Wallace Hardware during the time that an illegal immigrant was using her maiden name and Social Security number at Koch Foods. "They said they were working on it and they thought they were going to get it taken care of." http://www.citizentribune.com/news/view_sections.asp?idcategory=9&idarticle=7885

What is the best way to market these questions for a survey? I need to expand to small business and individuals nationwide, so I created 12 simply questions but need to know how to effectively market it. Simple survey: 1. Do you have a Last Will and Testament? 2. Has your Will been updated in the last year? 3. Have you received a speeding /traffic ticket? 4. Do you pay monthly for auto/health insurance? 5. Have you ever been treated unfairly or had a business rip you off? 6. Have you signed a contract(cell phone,buying a car, or house..etc)? 7. Doyou know anyone that has been a victom of identity theft? 8. What do you think the average Attorney rate is nationwide? _____ /hour 9. If you did not have to pay these high rates per hour, would you use legal experts (more often) to help deal with life events? 10. Would you get your will done if you was able to save the average $500 cost togetting it drafted or updated-at no extra cost?

Amcapital loans ALERT!!!!!? COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS OFFICE OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS AND BUSINESS REGULATION 10 Park Plaza - Suite 5170, Boston MA 02116 (617) 973-8700 FAX (617) 973-8799 TTY/TDD (617) 973-8790 www.mass.gov/consumer DEVAL L. PATRICK GOVERNOR TIMOTHY P. MURRAY LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR DANIEL C. CRANE DIRECTOR FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 19, 2007 CONTACT: Kimberly Haberlin (617) 973-8767 (617) 947-8942 Consumer Affairs Issues Consumer Alert on Advance-Fee Loan Scam And Pay Day Loans BOSTON - The Office of Consumer Affairs and the Division of Banks today issued a consumer alert warning consumers about a potential advance-fee loan scam and an illegal pay day loan operation recently advertised in the Boston Metro. ADVANCE-FEE LOAN SCAM Advance-fee loan scams generally involve the promise of easy credit regardless of credit history. Upon completion of a loan application, the entity requires a consumer to wire a percentage of the loan amount, various fees, or payment of insurance in order to secure the loan. Upon collection of the fee, the loan is never delivered. Amcorp Capital is operating a website at www.amcorpcapital.com. The only contact information provided on the web site is a toll free telephone number and an email address. The web site also lists a business address of One Boston Place, Boston, Massachusetts. Amcorp Capital claims to offer mortgage loans, education loans, personal loans, and automobile loans. This entity is not licensed by the Division of Banks and calls to the company have not been returned. An investigation by the Division of Banks has determined that no such business is located at the One Boston Place address. Moreover, the Amcorp Capital’s web site was apparently created on April 11, 2007. Similar to other advance-fee loan scams, the website promotes the availability of easy credit regardless of credit history. Based upon discussions with consumers, Amcorp apparently requires, upon completion of a loan application, that a percentage of the loan be paid up front directly via wire transfer. The Office of Consumer Affairs and Division of Banks strongly urges consumers not to do business with this entity. “This has all the earmarks of an advance-fee loan scam,” noted Director of Consumer Affairs Daniel C. Crane. “Consumers should know that no legitimate lender would require an upfront payment to secure a loan. Consumers should also be extremely cautious when dealing with companies that you do not know. All efforts should be made to safeguard your personal information such as bank account, credit card, or social security numbers. For more information on advance loan scams please see information from the Federal Trade Commission available at http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/tmarkg/loans.shtm. ILLEGAL PAY DAY LENDER Director Crane also announced that Commissioner of Banks Steven L. Antonakes had sent a letter to the Boston Metro requesting that the publication cease accepting print advertisements from pay day lenders. Commissioner Antonakes sent a similar letter to the Boston Metro in February 2005 and the newspaper, until recently, had not run advertisements for pay day lenders. “Pay day loans carry exorbitant interest rates and can quickly lead consumers into escalating debt,” said Director Crane. “There is also a high risk of identity theft as this company’s advertisement provides virtually no identifying information.” Commissioner Antonakes added, “There are no payday lenders licensed or based in Massachusetts. Under the state’s small loan law, annual interest rates on these loans are capped at 23% and fees are limited to $20. Pay day lenders typically charge annual percentage rates averaging 300 percent and fees averaging $30.” Pay day loans are short term, small sum, high rate, unsecured personal loans that use consumer checking accounts (either post-dated checks or electronic access) to secure repayment of the amount borrowed. Repayment of the full amount and lender fees are typically due within 14 days or with the borrower's next paycheck. Partial payments are rarely allowed so if a borrower can't repay the full amount within the required timeframe, the loan is usually rolled over for additional periods of time and additional fees. If you believe you have been a victim of this advance-fee loan scam or pay day loan operation, call the Division of Banks’ Consumer Assistance Unit at 1-800-495-BANK (2265). DON'T FALL FOR THIS COMPANY!!!

Is this a win for all us Jury backs women who blew the whistle women ordered not to socialize with Hispanics? At the center of the controversy was Angela Colquitt, a Hull resident who was assistant to ConAgra's human resources manager. Pilgrim's Pride later fired Colquitt after officials learned she conspired with others to defraud the company of nearly $100,000. Among other allegations, the lawsuit said Colquitt ordered Reyna and Ortega not to socialize with other Hispanics both on and off the job. "They could not socialize with other Hispanics, attend Hispanic social or community events or even church functions, because the company was afraid they might find out some of the employees had different names and were not authorized to work in the U.S.," said Athens attorney Jane Hill, who helped represent the women. If the women learned illegal immigrants were working under fake identities, company policy would have required them to report it, according to Hill, who said Colquitt didn't want the women to be in situations where that could happen. Ortega was responsible for processing paperwork for poultry plant employees. The lawsuit said Ortega discovered that Colquitt hired an employee's sister - an illegal immigrant - as her personal housekeeper, and allowed the plant's employee to claim his sister and nephew as his wife and son so he could fraudulently add them as dependents to his insurance coverage. Ortega brought this to the attention of a benefits coordinator, Denise Dimas, who told her that Colquitt approved of the arrangement, the lawsuit stated. Ortega and Reyna, an employment coordinator, told superiors at ConAgra about another fraud in August 2003. The lawsuit stated that Colquitt told them to make a fake Social Security card for a man who was in the country illegally. That man managed chicken houses that the plant manager owned, according to Hill. The women refused, and Colquitt and Dimas made the fake ID card on their own, the lawsuit states. Dimas also was fired by Pilgrim's Pride for conspiring with Colquitt to defraud the company by claiming reimbursements for college courses they never attended. Both women were arrested by Athens-Clarke police in March 2005, and they later pleaded guilty to theft by deception and were sentenced to probation. Colquitt not only committed fraud, but created a hostile work environment, according to the lawsuit. "Colquitt also made racial and derogatory comments about blacks, Hispanic women and older workers," Hill said. "She directed both plaintiffs to not hire so many young Hispanic women because they would just work long enough to get pregnant and take advantage of the company benefit plan. She said that black men should not be hired because they didn't work hard and would just fail the drug test. She said that older workers shouldn't be hired because they were more likely to get hurt." The federal jury agreed with Reyna's and Ortega's claim that ConAgra violated the federal Fair Labor Standards Act by regularly denying them overtime pay. The lawsuit stated the women were scheduled to work nine-hour days, but often put in 13 hours and were called in on weekends without compensation for the extra labor. http://www.onlineathens.com/stories/102607/news_20071026057.shtml

Sound advice from experience.(not a question)? When building a sound system, in the end what it comes down to is a couple of things. Are you looking for extreme bass aka S.P.L.(sound pressure level) or S.Q.(sound quality). Second is how much money are you willing to invest in the sound system. My personal taste has changed during the years. I used to want nothing but bass back in my high school years. Now I want Dolby 6.1 digital, THX and Blue Ray DVD sound quality. And there are amps and processors out there for car audio that offer those options, the Dolby Processors, surround sound etc. What I'm about to state next is for everyone who reads this. A few tips from personal experience, for everyone. If you're going to have a shop install your sound system don't give them your address, if you have to, just give them a PO Box address. Sure they can look up your info just by your license plate, but don't just give them your address. I think there is a department you can call so that your info cannot be accessed by anyone. Also, it is possible to program more than one remote for you car's alarm when it is installed without you knowing about it, so be very very careful. Some car alarms have the feature where you can have the car honk it's horn letting you know how many remotes are currently programmed to operate your alarm. Number one mistake is taking or showing so called "friends" where you live. They memorize how to get to your house and jack your car later on. Insurance companies statistics show that 70% of the time it's someone you know who jacked your stereo. This may seem obsessive to some but you could install a small hidden camera aimed at your car. At least you'll see who did it and what they were driving. Trust me, the cops/detectives(dics) will NOT lift a finger for you if you did not see who took your car. Yeah, like the thieves are going to jack your car in front of you, facing the possibility of 10 years for grand theft auto. So your best bet is a high definiton hidden camera, bright motion activated flood lights. Another big mistake people make is, when you do find your car a couple of days later, DO NOT TOUCH THE CAR. Reason why, because the lazy cops will refuse to check for fingerprints if you touched it !! (Even though your fingerprints are already over the entire car!!) Also good auto insurance, Allstate is good w/covering car stereos. Make sure you notify the insurance company of everything you have installed on the vehicle aftermarket. Take pictures of everything and save the receipts for all of the products, make photocopies of the receipts also and keep them in a file cabinet. You can also have the subs frame and amplifiers engraved with your name and serial number. Never engrave your social security number of driver's license number on anything, they could steal your identity. This may sound like preaching but if you ever get your car jacked you're going to wish you had known all of this.

Why would some people for illegal immigrant? How is it fair to the legal immigrants who waited in line.? I'm all for legal immigration, but not for the illegals. Think about the following and how they impact our lives. 1. They took away the jobs for legal residents, including legal immigrants who just came to this country and waited in line for years. 2. They are the major customers of identify thefts since they all need identities. 3. The tax payers pay for their children's free lunch, free education, and free medicals. 4. They bring down the livable wages and created their own job security since legal American workers can not live on the low wage after all the taxes taken out. 5. They expect everyone to learn Spanish if you want to do business with them. Now if you are not bi-lingual, you can't even compete in the job market in some areas. 6. If you ever ended up in a car accident involving an illegal immigrant, good luck. You better have very good insurance coverage because you will not be able to recover any damages or losses from them. Now think about how benefiting they are.