Identity Theft Passports for Victims

Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in the country, affecting nearly ten million Americans a year, and Marylanders are not immune. Examples of identity theft include when a thief uses your personal identifying information to open credit accounts in your name or evade criminal liability. If you are a victim of identity theft, the Consumer Protection Division of the Office of the Attorney General has tools available to help you address your identity theft issue. First we can give you step-by-step advice on how to protect yourself from ID thieves using, or continuing to use, your personal information. Second, we may be able to help you to address some of the issues that identity theft causes, such as dealing with credit card companies or collection agencies.

One of the tools we can offer you is an Identity Theft Passport. The Passport is a tool that may help you resolve financial issues caused by identity theft, and to help prevent a wrongful arrest if a thief uses your personal identifying information during the commission of a crime. You may download an application by clicking here; please fill it out completely and accurately, and follow all instructions. It is very important that you include a copy of a police report regarding the crime committed against you, as well as a photocopy of your Maryland Driver’s License or other State-issued identification card. We will conduct a background check to verify your identity and the details of the crime, so please include any other supporting documents that you may have. Court documents, financial account statements or your credit report will be very helpful in speeding up the approval process. Once we determine whether you are eligible for a passport, we will contact you to provide you with instructions on how to activate your Passport and answer any questions you may have.

You may also go to the Federal Trade Commission’s Website to find additional information and help towards cleaning up your credit and dealing with collection agencies or law enforcement. Visit www.ftc.gov/idtheft.

We understand that you are in a difficult situation, and will do our best to provide you with assistance to help you restore your good name and your credit record. If you have questions, please contact the Attorney General’s Identity Theft Unit at (410) 576-6491 or by e-mail at idtheft@oag.state.md.us.