To file a police report for identity theft, first complete the FTC Identity Theft Affidavit online at IdentityTheft.gov, then bring that affidavit along with your government-issued ID, proof of address, and evidence of the fraud to your local police department or county sheriff’s office. The police report and the FTC affidavit together form what federal law recognizes as an Identity Theft Report, and that combined document is what unlocks your strongest recovery rights.1Federal Trade Commission. Identity Theft: What To Do Right Away
Start With the FTC Affidavit
Go to IdentityTheft.gov before you contact the police. The site walks you through questions about the type of fraud, the accounts affected, and when things happened, then generates two documents from your answers: an Identity Theft Affidavit and a personalized recovery plan.2Federal Trade Commission. IdentityTheft.gov Print and save the affidavit as soon as it appears. Once you close the page, you cannot pull it back up.1Federal Trade Commission. Identity Theft: What To Do Right Away
The affidavit asks for your personal information and a detailed account of the fraudulent activity: whether someone took over an existing account or opened new ones, and the dollar amounts and dates involved. Those figures need to line up with the bank statements and credit reports you’ll hand to the officer, so take your time with them.
What to Bring to the Police Station
Gather these before you go:
- Government-issued ID: a driver’s license, passport, or state ID card.
- Proof of address: a recent utility bill, lease, or mortgage statement with your name on it.
- Your printed FTC Identity Theft Affidavit.
- Fraud evidence: bank or credit card statements showing unauthorized charges, collection letters, notices of accounts you didn’t open, and screenshots of fraudulent transactions. Specific amounts, dates, and the names of affected businesses matter.
- Credit reports from any bureau where unauthorized accounts or hard inquiries appear. You can pull free copies at AnnualCreditReport.com.
The more documentation you bring, the easier it is for the officer to process the report, and the harder it is for any institution later to question the legitimacy of your claim. Collection letters and bank denial notices are especially useful because they corroborate dates and amounts from a source outside your own records.
Where to File
File with your local police department or county sheriff’s office, even if the fraud physically happened somewhere else. Many states require the agency where you live to accept identity theft reports regardless of where the crime took place. Trying to track down the jurisdiction where the thief actually used your data is impractical and almost never necessary.
Call the department’s non-emergency line or check its website before you go. Some departments take identity theft reports through an online portal for non-violent crimes; others require you to come in. A two-minute phone call can save a wasted trip if the department routes these filings through a specific unit.
If the Department Refuses to Take Your Report
Some departments treat identity theft as a civil matter or a low priority and push back on filing. The Department of Justice’s Office for Victims of Crime acknowledges this happens and tells victims to be persistent.3Office for Victims of Crime. Steps for Victims of Identity Theft or Fraud If you’re turned away:
- Show your documentation. Collection letters, credit reports, and the FTC affidavit make it harder for a desk officer to call this a civil dispute.
- Ask for a supervisor. The initial officer may not know that state law requires the department to accept the report.
- Try the county sheriff or state police. Another agency with overlapping jurisdiction may take it.
- Write down the officer’s name, badge number, the date, and what you were told. You’ll need that record if you escalate.
Push through. Without a police report, credit bureaus are not required to block fraudulent accounts, and businesses can refuse to turn over the thief’s transaction records.3Office for Victims of Crime. Steps for Victims of Identity Theft or Fraud
What Happens During the Filing
If you file in person, a desk officer reviews your ID and affidavit, asks clarifying questions about the timeline, and may ask whether you suspect anyone. You give a short verbal statement, the officer transcribes it, and the information goes into the department’s records system to create a formal case entry.
For online filings, you upload digital copies of your evidence through the department’s portal and fill out a form similar to the in-person statement. Either way, you’ll sign the report under penalty of perjury, certifying everything in it is truthful. Filing a false police report is a criminal offense in every state, so double-check every date, dollar amount, and account number before you sign.
What You Walk Away With
The department will give you a case number. Write it down and keep it somewhere you can find quickly, because you’ll reference it in every call and letter to banks, credit bureaus, and collectors from here on. Request a copy of the full report, physical or digital. Some agencies charge a small fee for certified copies, and processing times vary.
Combine the police report with your FTC Identity Theft Affidavit. The two together are the Identity Theft Report that federal law recognizes.1Federal Trade Commission. Identity Theft: What To Do Right Away Make several copies, physical and digital, because you’ll be sending them to multiple institutions.
What the Report Lets You Do
Block Fraudulent Information on Your Credit Reports
Federal law requires credit bureaus to block any information you identify as resulting from identity theft within four business days of receiving your Identity Theft Report, proof of your identity, a description of the fraudulent information, and your statement that the accounts are not yours.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681c-2 – Block of Information Resulting From Identity Theft Send the report to the fraud department at each bureau where fraudulent accounts show up. The bureau also has to notify the business that reported the information that a block has been placed.
A bureau can rescind the block if it determines the request was based on a misrepresentation or that you actually received the goods or services from the blocked transaction.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681c-2 – Block of Information Resulting From Identity Theft For a legitimate victim this isn’t a problem, but it’s another reason to keep your documentation accurate.
Get an Extended Fraud Alert
Anyone who suspects identity theft can place an initial fraud alert for one year by contacting a single bureau, which must then refer the alert to the other two. With a completed Identity Theft Report, you qualify for an extended fraud alert that lasts seven years and also removes you from pre-screened credit and insurance offer lists for five years.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681c-1 – Identity Theft Prevention; Fraud Alerts and Active Duty Alerts This is one of the strongest reasons to insist on getting the police report filed.
Pull the Thief’s Records From Businesses
Federal law gives identity theft victims the right to obtain copies of applications and transaction records from any business where the thief used their information. The business must provide the records within 30 days of your written request, as long as you supply proof of your identity and a copy of the police report or identity theft affidavit.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681g – Disclosures to Consumers You can also direct the business to send the records to a law enforcement agency investigating the theft.
These records are worth having. They often contain the address, phone number, email, or IP address the thief used, which helps law enforcement and may surface accounts you didn’t know existed.
One Thing a Police Report Does Not Cover: Tax Fraud
If someone has filed a federal tax return using your Social Security number, or used your SSN for fraudulent employment, the police report alone will not resolve it. You need to file Form 14039, the IRS Identity Theft Affidavit, separately with the IRS. The fastest method is filing online through the IRS website; you can also fax it to 855-807-5720 or mail it to the IRS in Fresno, California.7Internal Revenue Service. Identity Theft Affidavit (Form 14039) Handle this in parallel with the police filing if tax fraud is part of what happened to you.