This week is National Protect Your Identity Week, sponsored by the Better Business Bureau and National Foundation for Credit Counseling. Identity theft prevention and resolution is something we live with every day here at Europ Assistance USA while protecting and assisting some of the 10 million Americans victimized each year. We provide ongoing protection to our customers and help them straighten out any damages that occur if they do fall prey to one of the fastest growing crimes around.

All this week, we’ve been highlighting a different kind of identity theft situation — how it happened and what was at risk, as well as how we were able to help alleviate some of the pain and protect the customer moving forward.

Today, we’re highlighting a story about a customer who lost personal information as a result of a theft while traveling. This story underscores why it’s important to be even more vigilant about your belongings and personal information while traveling. It also shows how EA USA is able to help customers even when they are traveling, anywhere in the world, and help them continue on with their travels with minimum disruption. Before you take your next trip, be sure to check out our tips to protect yourself from identity theft while traveling.

A customer and his wife were vacationing in Costa Rica, enjoying the time of their life. While their rental car was at an auto shop for a tire repair, the wife’s purse was stolen out of the car, along with her passport, credit cards, camera, driver’s license and Medicare card (which displayed her social security number).

The couple called us immediately, and one of our ID Theft Resolution Specialists assessed the situation and addressed the customer’s most urgent needs. Within 24 hours, EA USA:

• Cancelled her credit cards and requested issuance of new ones
• Provided an emergency cash advance for the couple so they could continue on with their vacation
• Contacted the embassy for issuance of new passports and faxed the necessary forms to the customer along with the embassy’s hours and required documents and fees
• Obtained an authorization form from the customer so we could access her credit report to place a fraud alert and contact potentially affected creditors

Upon the customer’s return home, we:

• Reviewed the customer’s credit report with her over the phone (no fraudulent charges were found)
• Placed a Fraud Alert on her credit records and requested a free credit report
• Opted her out of pre-approved credit card offers
• Assisted the customer in obtaining her Social Security statement to verify there was no fraudulent activity

The customer was able to continue her vacation without worrying about how to deal with the loss of money, credit cards and passports. Additionally, our quick intervention prevented any potential fraud from occurring.

This week we shared four common ways people fall prey to identity theft, and how EA USA helped them resolve their fears and disputes quickly and effectively. While the observance of National Protect Your Identity Week is coming to a close, the threat of identify theft is still out there and growing. If you have questions about how you can protect yourself, give us a call or leave a comment below.

• Identity Theft Customer Story #1: Fraudulent Credit Card Charges
• Identity Theft Story #2: ID Theft by a Family Member
• Identity Theft Story #3: Member Lured by Phishing Scam
• Indictments Reveal Scope of Identity Theft Ring – 40 Million Stolen CC Numbers
• Ten tips to prevent identity theft during business travel