STUDENT AID and IDENTITY THEFT



#### SAFEGUARD YOUR Student aid information

### Identity Theft 

**How does identity theft happen?** Criminals use their access to
personal data such as names, telephone numbers, Social Security Numbers,
and bank and credit card information. Using the stolen identity, the
criminal can fraudulently obtain credit cards, buy items over the
Internet, and even establish cellular phone accounts. Complaints to the
Federal Trade Commission about identity theft have doubled each year
since the Commission began compiling its complaint database.

### Reduce Your Risk

-   Apply for federal student aid by filling out the *Free Application
    for Federal Student Aid* (FAFSA) at www.fafsa.ed.gov.

-   When completing the FAFSA electronically, remember to exit the
    application and close the browser.

-   Keep your U.S. Department of Education (ED) PIN in a secure place.
    (Get your PIN at www.pin.ed.gov)

-   Don't reveal your PIN to anyone, even if that person is helping you
    fill out the FAFSA. The only time you should be using your PIN is on
    ED Web sites, which are secure.

-   Review your financial aid award documents and keep track of the
    amount of aid applied for and awarded.

-   Shred receipts and copies of documents with personal information if
    they are no longer needed.

-   Immediately report all lost or stolen identification to the issuer.

### How We Keep Your Information Safe

The U.S. Department of Education (ED) cares about the privacy of your
personal information. The information you share with us via our secure
Web sites (e.g., www.fafsa.ed.gov and www.pin.ed.gov) goes through a
process called encryption. Encryption uses a mathematical formula to
scramble your data into a format that is unreadable by anyone who might
intercept it. This is how we do our part to keep your information safe
-- but you need to do yours as well.

### Report Identity Theft

If you become a victim of identity theft or suspect that your student
information has been stolen,contact:

+-------------------------------------+--------------------------------+
| U.S. Department of Education,       | Equifax Credit Bureau          |
| Office of Inspector General Hotline |                                |
|                                     | 1-800-525-6285                 |
| 1-800-MIS-USED (1-800-647-8733)     |                                |
|                                     | www.equifax.com                |
| complain online: www.ed.gov/misused |                                |
|                                     | Experian Information Solutions |
| Federal Trade Commission            | (Formerly TRW)                 |
|                                     |                                |
| 1-877-IDTHEFT (1-877-438-4338)      | 1-888-397-3742                 |
|                                     |                                |
| complain online:                    | www.experian.com               |
| www.consumer.gov/idtheft            |                                |
|                                     | TransUnion Credit Bureau       |
| Social Security Administration      |                                |
|                                     | 1-800-680-7289                 |
| 1-800-269-0271                      |                                |
|                                     | www.transunion.com             |
| www.ssa.gov                         |                                |
+-------------------------------------+--------------------------------+