Act Quickly

Identity theft can wreak havoc on your finances and your credit history. Generally, the criminal will illegally apply for credit in another person's name and run up large bills — leaving the victim with the hassle of sorting out the confusion with creditors.

If you suspect that your personal information is being misused, act quickly. Here are some steps you should take:

• Contact First Citizens, any other banks and your credit card issuers immediately. They can review your accounts for fraudulent activity and if necessary, stop payments on checks, change personal identification numbers and passwords and open new accounts.

  Report any fraudulent activity on your First Citizens accounts and any unauthorized transactions to your local branch, or call First Citizens Bank Customer Contact Center at 1.888.FC DIRECT (1.888.323.4732).

  Report any fraudulent charges on your First Citizens credit account at 1.800.543.9000, or contact the issuers of any other cards.

• File a report with your local police department. The report will be helpful in explaining to creditors that you are a victim of identity theft.

• Contact the fraud departments of one of the major credit bureaus:

  Credit Bureaus	Address	Order Credit Report	Report Fraud
  Equifax	Equifax Credit Information Services, Inc PO Box 740241 Atlanta, GA 30374	1.800.685.1111	1.888.766.0008
  Experian	Experian PO Box 9556 Allen, TX 75013	1.888.397.3742	1.888.397.3742
  TransUnion	TransUnion PO Box 2000 Chester, PA 19022	1.800.888.4213	1.800.680.7289

• Check your accounts to see if anyone has changed your address, altered your PIN or requested new checks or cards.

First Citizens has provided an activity report you can download and print to record the steps you've taken to report the fraudulent use of your identity. To view this document, you need the Adobe Acrobat Reader. If you do not have the Adobe Acrobat Reader installed, you can download it from Adobe's Web site.