Identity theft isn’t just a financial headache. It can throw off your credit, tangle up your medical or job records, and add a layer of stress to everyday life that’s hard to shake. These real-life stories show just how lasting the impact can be, and why sorting everything out often takes far more time, energy, and emotional toll than people expect. The good news is that recovery is possible. With the right support and steps, people can rebuild, restore their records, and regain a sense of control.
When you hear “identity theft,” you might picture a stolen credit card and a few fraudulent charges. But for many victims, that’s just the beginning.
In fact, the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC) reports that repeat identity theft is common. Many victims are targeted again after their information is exposed, because once criminals get hold of your data, it can circulate and be reused for years.
Identity theft can also spill into the systems you rely on most: credit, healthcare, employment, government benefits, and more.
And unlike a single fraudulent charge you can quickly reverse, some forms of identity theft take more time to resolve. Victims can spend months (or longer) untangling accounts, disputing records, and proving they’re themselves, all while trying to prevent the next attack.
A stolen wallet turns into long-term harassment
Some identity theft starts offline: a stolen wallet or piece of mail, a lost ID. But even “old-school” theft can have lasting digital consequences. Once criminals have your information, it can spread online and lead to repeated fraud attempts.
When one Allstate Identity Protection member had their credit card information stolen, it didn’t stop at a single charge. Within days, they were dealing with multiple fraudulent purchases across different merchants. They spent weeks calling banks, disputing charges, and locking down accounts with new card numbers and passwords.
That pattern—one incident turning into ongoing fallout—is what California resident Jessica Roy also described after her wallet was stolen. A reporter with the Los Angeles Times, Roy wrote about her years-long effort to restore and protect her credit.
Within twenty-four hours of the theft, thieves began charging her cards. She quickly canceled them, reported the stolen wallet, and got a new driver’s license. But within days, letters announcing her new credit cards came—cards the thieves had applied for. Over time, the criminals rented and wrecked cars, bought tens of thousands of dollars of merchandise, and wrote scores of bad checks, all in Roy’s name.
Identity theft crosses into medical fraud
Identity theft can also affect the records you rely on to get care. Medical identity theft happens when someone uses your information to receive healthcare, which can lead to inaccurate diagnoses, prescriptions, or procedures being added to your medical history.
One Allstate Identity Protection member saw how quickly this type of fraud can surface when a collections agency contacted them about a medical bill they didn’t recognize. The case revealed that someone had used their personal information to receive care. With support from their restoration specialist, the member disputed the debt, contacted the provider, and requested corrections so inaccurate information wouldn’t follow them in the future.
A similar case made headlines in Arizona in 2025: according to 12News, a Valley woman was sentenced after using another person’s identity to receive medical care, racking up roughly $300,000 in bills. The crime came to light when the victim received a major hospital bill for treatment she never received.
Stolen Social Security numbers cause employment and tax chaos
Your Social Security number (SSN) is one of your most valuable pieces of personal information. And it isn’t only used to open credit cards—it can also be used to apply for work. In many cases, victims don’t realize it until the paperwork catches up, when they’re suddenly flagged for income they never earned or contacted by agencies trying to reconcile wage records.
In one employment identity theft case, an Allstate Identity Protection member discovered someone had used their Social Security number for work, triggering confusion around reported wages and official records.
Their restoration specialist helped them gather documentation, contact the employer and relevant agencies, and file the paperwork needed to correct employment and tax records. What initially looked like a simple “identity mix-up” became a longer process of getting records corrected across multiple systems.
This kind of fraud can also show up on a larger scale. In June 2025, Homeland Security Police raided an Omaha, Nebraska, meatpacking plant where more than seventy people had gotten jobs using stolen Social Security numbers. While the workers’ identities may not have been flagged immediately by E-Verify, the stolen credentials created real consequences for victims, especially when income records and tax reporting got tangled.
Benefits fraud puts your wages at risk
When criminals claim government benefits using stolen identities, victims are often unaware at first. In many cases, the fraud isn’t discovered until notices are sent, or agencies later attempt to recoup money that was never received by the victim.
One Allstate Identity Protection member discovered their information had been used to submit fraudulent benefit applications. Even after the fraud was reported, the case required continued follow-up: responding to notices, providing documentation, and confirming the false claim had been removed from their record.
A Virginia man named Lamar Parker shared a similar experience with ABC News. He said his identity was stolen in 2020 during the COVID-19 crisis, and someone used his Social Security number to collect $27,000 in unemployment benefits.
After years trying to resolve the issue, Johnson said that in 2024, the IRS notified him and his now-ex-wife that their wages could be garnished to reclaim the money. Johnson said he had never filed for unemployment.
Criminals take over retail accounts, too
In some cases, identity theft means losing control of existing accounts. Known as “account takeover,” this type of fraud can let criminals make purchases, redirect deliveries, and lock victims out of their accounts.
One Allstate Identity Protection member received an alert about an unfamiliar phone number tied to an online account and soon realized their email had been hacked. The thief was attempting to reset passwords and gain access to additional accounts, like retail and financial accounts connected to that email.
With support from their restoration specialist, the member secured their email, updated passwords, enabled multi-factor authentication, and contacted affected companies to regain control before the issue spread further.
CBS News reported on another account takeover case after a New Jersey man and his wife had their identities stolen. According to the report, thieves accessed their bank accounts, took money, applied for eighteen credit cards in their names, and took over their Amazon accounts.
Allstate Identity Protection is here to help
For many victims, identity theft isn’t one event—it’s multiple attacks over time. One exposure can lead to new credit fraud, account hacking, and phone carrier manipulation, often in quick succession. That’s why early action (like freezing your credit or filing a police report) matters, and why ongoing monitoring can be just as important.
With Allstate Identity Protection, you can get alerts that help you catch issues early, plus access to a dedicated restoration specialist if fraud occurs, so you have a real person to help you start putting things back in order.
Identity theft can impact nearly every part of your life. But recovery doesn’t have to be something you face alone.
