LINDA FOLEY ADDRESSES EMOTIONAL SIDE OF IDENTITY THEFT

Linda Foley, who founded Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC) after being devastated from an ID theft that resulted from an act by her boss, is certainly a good candidate to discuss the emotional side of this issue. In a recent Health magazine article, she laid out five ways to deal with feelings while trying to put your finances back in order. First, you deal with the anger from having something this personal happen to you. Instead of dwelling on the incident, let it work for you in fighting back against the bad guys. Second, don’t take on a guilt trip because you think you weren’t careful enough, and definitely don’t turn inward, blocking out friends and family. Three, you aren’t alone; get help immediately, seeking out those who have either experienced this fraud, or experts in the field like ITRC and Privacy Rights Clearinghouse. Four, if you really hit bottom and can’t get out of bed in the morning, this is the time to turn to a professional for help. And five, you’ll eventually be able to face up to the fact that it happened, you did something about it, and now it’s time to move on. However, moving on should include taking every precaution to see that it doesn’t happen again. After blogging on this subject for over two years, I do want to add the fact that most identity theft is preventable. Having said that, the U.S. Congress has been of no help with this problem, so it is up to the consumer to take responsibility. To do that, we must be awarded full control over our names and personal data.