Someone stole my wallet

EnumaElish

Someone entered the office building and stole purses and wallets, including my wallet.

I've just canceled my credit cards and my ATM card.

My social security card is gone, as well as my driver's license.

I might have had my home address and telephone number in it -- I don't even remember everything I've had in it.

Anyone who has dealt with this situation before? Any and all suggestions welcome.

Moonbear

First and foremost, make sure you have a police report filed. If you have later problems with something that was in the wallet that you forgot was in there and didn't cancel, you'll need that police report. You'll also need that to help get your SS card and DL replaced (in the future NEVER carry your SS card in your wallet...you don't need it and you really don't want it in other people's hands).

Second, since they have quite a lot of your personal info in one fell swoop, call up one of the big three credit reporting agencies and put a fraud notification/hold/whatever it was called on your report along with a phone number so you get a call if anyone tries to get credit in your name. This will prevent people from using your information to start taking out loans, etc.

Third, call your bank and tell them the same thing, that your wallet was stolen along with your ATM card and SS#, so if anyone tries draining your bank account (other than with the ATM card that's cancelled), they don't let it happen.

If your home address was in it, change your door locks.

You're going to have fun replacing things without a SS card or DL...so work on getting those replaced first.

That's all I can suggest. And from now on, don't leave your wallet in your desk if you can't lock it when you walk away.

hypatia

Yes, they really hit the jackpot with your SS card. They could buy several large items, befor you even know about it. Hope you made the police report today.

renigade666

What could they possibly do with your SS card?
I thought it was only needed to get a job. :S

EnumaElish

MB, why should I change the door locks? I still have my keys. And the thief doesn't.

turbo

I don't travel any more, but if I was still in the consulting business, with all the hotels, restaurants, gas stations, etc, that would have access to my CC numbers, I would seriously think about signing up for this service. I have had people fraudulently add restaurant charges to my card, and once, after a stay in a chain motel in Paducah, I received a CC bill charging me with many thousands of dollars in nautical fittings from a marina on the Great Lakes. AT&T Mastercard never called me to verify those purchases, even though I had never bought nautical gear before, don't live near Chicago, and don't own a sailboat. After that, they smartened up and gave me a heads-up call whenever I bought something worth a few grand or more.

http://www.lifelock.com/lifelock-for...ct-my-identity

Moonbear

Sorry, got carried away. Was thinking of purses stolen where the keys go with the wallet. Though, if you have one of those busy-body neighbors who's home during the day, letting them know to keep an extra eye on your place might be a good idea, since the thief now knows what time you're away at work.

turbo

That is a really high-risk situation for women. They often have EVERYTHING in their purses, including car keys, house keys, electronic fobs for unlocking their cars, etc, etc. A thief can use a fob to identify a car in the parking lot, navigate to the woman's home, possibly use her remote garage-door opener to gain access to the house, if attached, and hide the car from the neighbors while ransacking the place. My wife has a locker at work, and her purse is in it all the time that she is there, otherwise I would ask her to adopt much more stringent security measures.

CaptainQuasar

Wow, my sympathies man, that is soooo incredibly frustrating when something like that happens.

I don't have law enforcement experience but it seems to me that the the thief is in a good situation to do identity theft, the last thing he would want to do is break into your house or do anything in connection to you personally that would make him more traceable. He's no more likely to be a random crazy person that someone who simply sees you on the street.

I would expect that the most likely thing for him to do would be to try to sell your identity online since he's got the “full package” so to speak. I can't think of any easy way to Google for him putting the stuff up for sale but it would be awesome if there was some way for you to catch him that way… is it worth asking your state DMV, while you're getting a new driver's license, if it's possible to “cancel” your driver's license number? In my state they have a two-digit serial included with everything else which I assume could be changed for you.

larkspur

Yes, that has happened to me. Someone in my office was too lazy to carry their key when they went out of the office so they left the back door unlocked. The thief walked in through the back door which was right next to my office and stole my wallet out of my purse that was in the desk drawer. The building security found my wallet in the stairwell. All the cash (about $12) was gone but thankfully everything else was still there.

turbo

Oh, that was lucky! I'd rather have several hundred dollars in cash stolen, but get back all the cards, IDs, etc. Everything that is really non-essential (like prescriptions, insurance cards, etc,) is represented in my wallet by photocopies, and the originals are here at home in the safe.

Stuff is sure weird these days. I was taking my wife to a post-op examination today, and we stopped at our credit union to deposit our state income tax refund. The teller at the drive-up asked me to take off my sunglasses, so I did, and then put them back on. She then told me that my sunglasses had to be off during the entire transaction. Then she asked me and my wife to send her (through the pneumatic tubes) both of our driver's licenses. Heck! We were depositing well over a thousand dollars to our checking account while leaving a cash withdrawal of only about $100. What the hell is going wrong with this country??? If we were criminals, it is unlikely that we would go to a drive-up teller with video surveillance and ask for a tiny fraction of the check's value in cash.

CaptainQuasar

Yeah, I noticed years and years ago that my bank didn't request any identification at all when I made a deposit and got cash back at the same time. Meaning, of course, that someone who got hold of a check made out to me could get part or all of the cash if they also knew where I banked - as someone taking delivered mail out of my mailbox might. It could simply be that they're all wising up to that because crotchety paranoid people like me have complained. Sorry.

turbo

The sad part is that they have photographs of each and every member, and the tellers can see your face by punching up your account numbers. When the security cameras (and the teller's own eyes) tell her that I am the person who opened the account, and I am taking a few percent of a deposited state check in cash, that ought to be pretty straight-forward. What's the problem? I'm baffled by the CYA procedures that have been instituted to restrict my access to my own money.

CaptainQuasar

Wow, they have photographs of you! That's pretty impressive. Yeah, in that situation they ought to even be able to do face recognition via the security camera.

JasonRox

I thought guys keep their wallets in their pockets? Like me.

I agree with Moonbear too. Don't carry your SS card.

lisab

I'm so sorry to hear about this...what a major pain in the neck!

Our building is code-protected (you have to enter a code to open the door), but I'm going to start putting my purse and car keys in my file cabinet.

Moonbear

Yeah, don't assume anything. You never know when someone will just hold a door open for someone entering behind them, or if the thief is even someone working in your building...or a friend or relative they let in and never considered following to make sure they left right after the visit.

I actually try to keep my car keys and purse separate...keys in my jacket pocket so if my purse is stolen, they don't get the keys too. And I lock my office door every time I leave, even if it's just for a few minutes.

Regarding turbo's comment about a thief using the garage door opener to get into your house after stealing the car...people I know who have to park their cars in places that are high crime areas will take their garage door opener with them when they get out of the car, not leave it behind.