I got robbed...

[Skweres]

that sucks, i hope you get a new card number soon so you arent without one, besides that i hope they catch they guy before he steals someone elses

[KiltedKnight]

I dunno folks, those credit cards are very dangerous things to have around for a lot of reasons. I did some plastic surgery on my wife a while back- I cut up all of her credit cards and mine too.

I keep just one card in case I need to order something on line or reserve a room in another city but I pay in cash whenever I get to the hotel so there's no bill lurking somewhere in the next month.

I paid off every card that we had and I will never, ever, have another that will just be maxed out with those incredibly high interest rates. I believe that is the reason that my wife and I can afford most anything we want these days.

Think about it...

Chris.

[canawler]

I dunno folks, those credit cards are very dangerous things to have around for a lot of reasons. I did some plastic surgery on my wife a while back- I cut up all of her credit cards and mine too.

One important point to remember is that cutting up a card and never using that account again doesn't close the account. You often have to request the account be closed in writing and even then you should confirm it at a later date. Having too many open lines of credit can actually cause you not to get loans because lending institutions figure you could suddenly max out all your cards and have to default on the loan.
And no, I didn't have to learn this the hard way but when I got married my wife discovered she still had a credit card account open that she thought she closed several years before.

[mexpiper]

Also send a copy of the report from the orginal credit card company, to the same credit reporting agencies.

http://onguardonline.gov/idtheft.html

The above mention site is very helpful for protecting yourself.

As someone who works with fraud and theft on a regular bases, its best to be prepared than not. It also helps if you put an alert on your id's that anyone attempts to open a new credit line that you be notified and a key word is used. I had a client who was vicitm of identity theft 4 years ago. It was all cleaned up and taken care of. A few weeks ago, she got numerous calls from a collection agency telling her that she owed them 10K from a previous credit card company, that sold an old debt and they were attempting to collect. This was the same account which was part of the identity theft. Luckly my files contained all the supporting document that i filed on her behalf 4 years prior. We also filed a complaint with the Attorney General's Office, against the company that sold the "old debt" and the new company that bought the old debt.

That why i only use one card for internet purchases, one for traveling only etc.. so its easier to keep track of.