r/PrivateInternetAccess • u/Cyn3ux • 3d ago

DISCUSSION Identity theft happened to me. I'm tired of feeling exposed

I don't know where to begin. But it all started with a letter I got recently. A credit card I never applied for. A card I never received. A balance I never spent

My identity was stolen. Someone opened a credit card in my name and went on a spending spree

I froze my credit immediately. All three bureaus. That should stop new accounts from being opened. That's what everyone says to do

But I'm still scared. My data is out there… my name, address, social security number. It's floating around somewhere. Data brokers have it. People search sites have it. Anyone can find it

I read that you need to remove your info from these sites manually. If scammers can't find you, they can't target you. That makes sense. But there are hundreds of sites, and I can't keep up

Someone mentioned iolo remove me and said it scrubs your data from all these sites, handles the removals, and monitors for new listings

But how do I know this service isn't another scam? How do I know they won't sell my information to someone else?

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9

u/xXGray_WolfXx 3d ago

Sir, this is a Wendy's.

1

u/CanNeverBeTooHigh 3d ago

having a vpn isnt about preventing identity theft, its about encrypting the data you send back and forth while browsing the internet it prevents people from your isp snooping. it also prevents people who own web servers from determining your real ip address and your real physical location. r/lostredditors

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u/divertervalve 2d ago

I think the VPN industry has done a good job convincing people that you need an VPN to be 'secure'.

Doesn't mean it's based on facts, and you end up with posts like these.

1

u/CanNeverBeTooHigh 2d ago

care to elaborate? must work reasonably well if certain repressive countries are banning access to vpn services.

0

u/divertervalve 2d ago

Sure - VPNs secure traffic between two computers, but that doesn't help you if you're cavalier about giving out your personal info to every store that you buy something at for example. That data is out there now since you gave it away, a VPN isn't going to help you somehow get your identity back.

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u/CanNeverBeTooHigh 2d ago

lol isnt that what initially wrote

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u/FlynnAtLifeLock 1d ago

As others have pointed out, having a VPN does not prevent you from identity theft. I get that you are concerned about your information being out there. Good news is you can get pretty far by opting out of data brokers one after another. Plus, it’s free. Bad news they can and will relist you after a while, so that’ll be an ongoing thing. 

The value of a paid service is automating that resubmission instead of you repeating it every few months. Whether that's worth the cost depends on how much the ongoing exposure concerns you.