This document provides advice to protect one's identity and finances during and after a divorce. It recommends securing personal records and digital assets, monitoring credit, notifying credit bureaus of fraud alerts, protecting access to financial accounts/insurance policies, and using caution on social media regarding the divorce to avoid issues in court. Overall, the document stresses being prepared, securing important documents and accounts, and consulting legal advice when going through divorce proceedings.

1. Divorce and Identity Theft

2. Protect yourself from Identity Theft
 Identity Theft can happen before, during or after your divorce. This could be
from;
 Family members
 Family friends
 In-laws
 Scammers
 Be prepared. Know what your credit looks like.
 Be secure. Flag your credit with fraud alerts or security freezes.
 Take action. If someone attempts to obtain, open or use your credit. File a
detailed police report.

3. Credit Bureaus
 Notify the three National Credit Bureaus imminently by placing fraud alerts or
Security Freezes on each bureau;
 TransUnion
 Experian
 Equifax
 You can renew your fraud alerts every 90 days, this includes free credit reports.
Review them closely. You may need to provide copies to the courts.
 Credit Scores are not free, per se. You might be offered a ‘free’ score to try a trial
membership. Be careful, now is not the time to get tricked into a costly
membership you really don’t need at this time.
 CreditKarma offers a free score from TransUnion. No tricks !
 Security Freezes are not free, start with the Alerts first. Check with the credit bureaus for
pricing/

4. Financial Accounts
 This can quickly become complex. Contacting current creditors to inform
them of a pending divorce, could concern them enough to block the
accounts to prevent additional debt from being added, especially now that
the income may be less than when they were opened.
 Open a new checking account to forward paychecks and income.
 You can request the bank that holds any joint accounts to freeze them until
after the divorce.
 Household bills still need to be paid, so maintaining access to funds will be important for
both parties.
 Contact the IRS to report separate income

5. Household Accounts
After the divorce is final, if you are no longer living in the residence, unless an
agreement is in place, Cancel the following:
 Electric
 Cable
 Gas
 Phone
 Magazines
 Other _______________
 Other _______________

6. Advocate TIP
 Sometimes an angry spouse will run up credit card debt on a joint account
or engage in other activities in order to ruin your credit.
 Protect your Financial Credit & Identity by monitoring your credit files, a
good monitoring service may be useful at least for the first six month.
 When looking at credit monitoring, stick close to the credit bureaus. TransUnion offers
Triple Monitoring for a reasonable monthly fee, cancel anytime.
 Obtain a new phone number,
 Google Voice is a quick, free voice mail service.
 Obtain a new postal box for important mail pertaining to your divorce and
your existing mail.
 Have your current mail forwarded to that new POB.

7. Social Media Accounts
 Decide who’s keeping what accounts.
 Facebook
 Twitter
 MySpace
 For the accounts you keep, change the passwords!
 Limit what you say about your pending divorce on Social Media Accounts, it
can be used against you in court.
 It’s a good idea to block your soon to be ex-spouse from your new accounts.
 Restricting your online presence is a good way to start new.

8. Beneficiaries
This may change, but until the courts decide, limit or restrict spouse access to
the following:
 Health Insurance
 Credit Card Insurance
 Life Insurance
 Auto Insurance
 Employers or Pension Insurance
 401k Accounts
 Healthcare Medical Cards
 Change card number

9. Financial Attacks
 Divorces can be the best resolution for both parties involved, but if they
turn into a spiteful bitter nightmare your credit and identity could be put at
risk.
 If you find yourself being Financially Attacked with accounts being opened
or reopened, document everything.
 Dates, Times and Accounts used
 Be prepared to provide copies of your Divorce Decree to prove your name
and income should not have been used without your consent.
 File a detailed police report:
 Local Police
 Federal Trade Commission Identity Theft Report

10. Advocate TIP
 People who may have experienced a divorce or separation are always willing
to share what happened to them, what went wrong and what didn’t. That’s
them, protect you!
 There is no substitute for professional advice, a good divorce attorney can
save you time, money and knows state laws pertaining to divorce.
 Even if you both decide to settle your divorce amicably, things change and
emotions take over rational thinking. Don’t be caught off guard !

11. Digital Assets
 The term “digital assets” means, but is not limited to, files, emails,
documents, images, audio, video, and similar digital files which currently
exists or may exist as technology develops or such comparable items as
technology develops, stored on digital devices, including, desktops, laptops,
tablets, peripherals, storage devices, mobile telephones, smartphones, and
any similar digital device which currently exists or may exist as technology
develops or such comparable items as technology develops, regardless of
the ownership of the physical device upon which the digital asset is stored.
 If you have it and it belongs to you, secure it.
 It may be part of the divorce, but until it’s ownership is determined by the
courts, protect it from sabotage or theft.

12. Personal Records
KEEP IN SAFE PLACE MAKE COPIES AND SHARE COPIES
 Diplomas
 Birth Certificates
 Passports
 Pension papers
 Flash Card / Chip (storage devices)
of important data from your
computer
 Other_________________
 Other_________________
 Bank statements
 Real estate records
 Tiles
 Deeds
 Tax Returns
 W2 statements
 Other___________________
 Other___________________

13. COMPANY NAMES MENTIONED HEREIN ARETHE PROPERTY OF, AND
MAY BETRADEMARKS OF,THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS.
THIS DOCUMENT IS IN NOWAY A GUIDETO DECEIVINGTHE COURTS
OR ONES LEGAL OBLIGATIONS DURING A DIVORCE. IT IS HIGHLY
RECOMMENDED YOU RETAIN LEGAL ADVICE AND FOLLOW THE LAWS
INYOUR STATE PERTAININGTO DIVORCE.
Compiled and designed by Mark Fullbright , Certified IdentityTheft Risk
Management Specialist™ (CITRMS) as a free service for consumers who may be
planning or going through a divorce and to reduce their exposure to identity theft.
Stay Safe, Stay Secure