Experian's Newest Ad Minimizes The Difficulty Fighting Identity Theft

By now I am sure most of you have probably seen this newest ad from Experian on TV.



It states that the character isn't worried about the identity theft which occurs on her vacation because she monitors her credit report. While there is actually good advice to monitor your credit report, saying she isn't worried is a simplistic statement.  You as a consumer should be worried about identity theft because you would have to do some or all of the following:

• File a police report on your stolen identity
• I recommend this as mandatory. It helps to have for any future problems with some creditors.
• Place a fraud alert or freeze to avoid any future fraud on your credit report
• Here is the link from Experian about fraud alerts and credit freezes.
• Dispute the listed accounts not just on your Experian but also Equifax and TransUnion reports.
• Disputes aren't quick fixes and can take time.
• Disputing an item once might not be enough and will have to dispute the same listing multiple times to get it removed. Providing proof like a police report might not even get it removed.

Doing all that takes time. In fact it can take years dealing with all the issues from identity theft. Not to mention the time it will take in proving your identity while applying for credit because of the fraud alerts or freezes.  

I understand Experian wanting to make more money off of you and I than they already do.  I just don't think they should use the words not worried when it comes to identity theft.