With access to your credit, the thief may run up a large bill and not pay it back. The thief also may use your name to file bankruptcy as an attempt to avoid detection. All these bad marks end up on your official credit report. Unfortunately, you may not know what is going on until you apply for credit and are denied. This can be especially devastating if you discover the problem while trying to obtain a mortgage or car loan.
Criminals rely on the time lag in the detection of their activities to avoid getting caught.
The best way to quickly detect identity theft is to check your credit report on a yearly basis or whenever you think there may be a problem. If you have been denied credit you may obtain your report free within 30 days of the denial. You also can take some extra precautions. For instance, be wary when giving out personal information. Make sure you understand why the entity asking for it needs this information and for what purpose it will be used.