[Carl in Tampa]

I guess it was my turn. Identity theft has raised its ugly head.

At year's end I pay a couple of big bills and so I went on line with my financial institution to assure I had enough money in checking to cover the expenses. I was surprised to find that my Social Security direct deposit had not been made at the end of November. I checked further and was stunned to find that it had not been made for three months.

It turns out my Social Security account had been accessed on line and my home address, telephone number, e-mail address and institution where my direct deposit went, had all been changed ON THE SOCIAL SECURITY WEB SITE.

Of course this could only be done by someone who knew my Social Security number. I guard the number closely. The lady at the local office, where I had to go with photo ID to get the problem resolved, said that in all likelihood my identifying information was stolen from a medical facility such as a doctor's office, hospital or the physical rehab facility where I have been recently.

She said identity theft of this kind is commonplace in The Villages.

All of my missing checks were restored and my identifying data was corrected. To prevent a future occurrence of this kind my Social Security account is now blocked so that no changes can be made on line. I will have to go in person to a local office with photo ID if I want any changes made in the future.

The next day I signed up for Lifelock. With the premium level of Lifelock any attempt to open a new account for my direct deposit will be immediately detected and I will be contacted.