Millions of people are affected by identity theft each year. It might start with a mysterious credit card charge, a bill you don’t recognize, or a letter from the IRS that says you already got your refund — even though you didn’t.

If someone uses your information to make purchases, open new accounts, or get a tax refund, that’s identity theft. Recovering from identity theft often takes time and persistence. That’s why today’s announcement from the FTC is a big deal: New features at IdentityTheft.gov make it easier to report and recover from identity theft.

When you use IdentityTheft.gov to report a problem, you’ll get a personal recovery plan that:

  • walks you through each recovery step
  • tracks your progress and adapts to your changing situation
  • pre-fills letters and forms for you.

Check out this new video to see how it works.