Very complex problem

What is the name of your state? What is the name of your state? What is the name of your state? Alabama

My 21 year old son, whom we believe to suffer from bipolar disorder (waiting on a psychiatric evaluation) has put us in a very difficult situation.

We have reason to believe that he has obtained credit and/or opened an internet banking account using his dad's SSN. They share the same name (Jr. and III). We believe this because we searched his room (believe me, we had good reason) and found a piece of paper with his dad's SSN, birthdate, and Drivers License number on it in son's handwriting. We also have found on two separate occasions preapproved credit applications which he got out of our mailbox, and realize he very easily could have intercepted others and submitted them.

We have subscribed to a credit reporting service, have taken every precaution we can think of (locking up credit card information, ordering a lock mailbox so he can't intercept the mail, etc.). But we are extremely concerned about how to proceed.

If he has done what we think he has done, it amounts to identity theft, and we don't know how to protect ourselves without putting this in the legal system, but we have to protect ourselves.

We are just in agony over this. Please help.

[bigun]

Is it possible to talk with your son and just tell him you need the truth? Also, have you started intercepting his mail and looking for credit card correspondence? I you don't start getting bils and phone calls in the next 30 days or so, he may not have done anything. It is wise to take precautions. You may also consider contacting the CRA's and having a fraud alert placed on your accounts.

We have talked to our son on numerous occasions when these kind of things have happened. (He's gotten credit cards out of my purse at night and used them to pay his cell phone bill, buy things on the internet, etc. Needless to say, as soon as we found out we had those cards replaced and I now keep my purse with me wherever I am in the house.) As I said, we believe he has bipolar -- family history, and this behavior has just started in the last 18 months. Until then he was a model student, model son, etc. There is no drug involvement. (We had him tested, and routinely search his room.)

It just seems like when we plug one hole he finds another. As far as intercepting the mail goes, we all live together in one house, and he manages to get to the mail before I do most days. (We all work outside the home, but he has more freedom to come and go at his job.) He is out of town for a week, and while he's gone we're installing a locked mailbox, which should go a long way to protecting our mail. Additionally, when he has ordered things over the internet, he has them shipped to his place of employment, and there may be other mail that goes there of which we are unaware.

I AM thinking of posting the fraud alert with the credit agencies, but have just subscribed to a credit monitoring service and if I do that then they can't send me reports. If we don't see anything unusual in the next couple of months, then I will go the alert route.

Thanks for replying -- I guess my biggest legal question is how to protect ourselves without getting law enforcement involved. As a mom who firmly believes her son is mentally ill, I just can't bring myself to do that.

[JETX]

Get copies of your credit files from all three CRA's (Credit Reporting Agencies).

Not only do they show reported credit reports, but at the bottom will be a section titled "Inquiries", showing the creditors who have recently requested copies of your credit file. See who they are, and if none of them look familiar to you, contact the CRA and ask for information on the firm making inquiries. Then, contact that firm to find out why they did a credit pull on you (usually done to extend credit or to extend a credit offer). If they did it as a result of a credit application, get the account information (remember it is in your name), and then close the account.