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Lincoln County family falls victim to extreme identity theft

“Our bank accounts have been emptied,” said Coleman. “Any cards, or any accounts of the sort, have been emptied.”

MOSCOW MILLS, Mo. — A Lincoln County woman says an extreme case of identity theft has turned her life upside down.

For Shannon Coleman, the last few months have been a struggle that she can only describe in one way.

“A nightmare,” Coleman said. “A traumatic nightmare.”

It's a nightmare that Coleman believes started in her phone.

“All of a sudden, it would pop up a bubble that said live screen view,” said Coleman.

Coleman said that was only the start of a situation that saw her online accounts, and even her children's video games, compromised.

“Our bank accounts have been emptied,” said Coleman. “Any cards, or any accounts of the sort, have been emptied.”

Coleman froze her credit, but that hasn’t stopped someone from applying for nearly 40 credit cards in her name.

“Just last week we had another call about a $9,500 loan,” said Coleman. “I was even scared to tell anybody because it’s so farfetched. It’s crazy!”

Amira Dhalla, director of security and privacy programs for Consumer Reports, said stories like this have become all too common.

“You are seeing this quite often now on TikTok where adults are seeing more spyware attached to their devices,” said Amira Dhalla.

While there are steps you can take to protect yourself, such as contacting the major credit bureaus, it can take time before identity theft victims see real help.

“I would recommend doing necessary steps like setting up multi-factor authentication so even when someone has access to your accounts, devices, or information they’re not able to get in,” said Dhalla.

“Is there anything people can do so they don’t have to just wait and they can speed up the process,” asked 5 On Your Side reporter Holden Kurwicki.

“Unfortunately, because it is happening often, we are seeing a lot of waiting,” said Dhalla. “It does mean it takes a long time to get to all of these different cases for all of these individuals.”

“I just want everybody to be aware because it has definitely turned our lives upside down,” said Coleman.

If you are a victim of identity theft click here for a full list of resources available to help.

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