They used to steal Social
Security numbers for identity theft even from dead people. Now they just create
new numbers and many are getting away with it at least for a while. They call it synthetic identity fraud where
the seeker of a new identity can be scammed. The sellers are convinced that
they are helping people for a fee of course. The people are desperate to have
their credit restored in any way possible other than the old fashioned way of
paying down their debt. The identity manipulation that is going on now is
against the law.
The fraudster uses one true piece
of your identity and then combines it with fake information. Eva Velasquez is
the President/CEO, of Identity Theft Resource Center says
that then you can be assigned a new good social security number to go get
credit with and buy more stuff. The Social Security Administration says that
Synthetic Identity Fraud comprises 85% of all fraud in America now. It has become
big business costing $2 Billion dollars per year. The people committing fraud
attract people from all over the world through social media.
At times they will advise you to
keep your name but to get a new address then they will provide you a nine digit
number to use for a fee. They call that number a CPN Credit Profile Number that
is very similar to a Social Security Number. The fraud guys will tell you to use it like a
Social Security number to get credit cards. CPNs are often found by plugging in
random 9 digit numbers into government websites. Some will sell you a good set
of numbers for $350 dollars and tell you it is legal. The fact is that there is
NO legal use for a CPN and the Social Security Administration says they are not
legal despite what the credit repair companies tell you.
The credit repair companies get
away with it because some credit card companies don’t check for valid Social
Security numbers and they do give the client new credit. The ETA Electronic Transactions
Association which is a trade group consisting of credit card issuing banks says
that consumers that use a CPN is committing a crime even though
they rarely check. If they have a percentage of noncollectable debt, they will
just write it off as a loss. No real
sweat for them. The CPN companies will
offer lines of credit for a few thousand dollars from you. Your money is gone
and the credit was a fraud and you have nothing.
The website Legal Cpn.com has a F
rating from the Better Business Bureau. There is nothing legal about any of
this.
Social Security
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