Will banks have my cifas data?

tonideportivo

Good Evening,
In November 2015 I realized that I might have become victim of theft identity.I did CIFAS protective registration and monitored my statements every day until now. Nothing unusual ever occured to me. However this is what happaned yesterday.
I tried to open a new bank account and I was told it will take a few days, because the bank needs to carry out some extra checks and I said that's okey, because I've CIFAS protective registration. On the application form I left my new mobile number, therefore if the bank wants to get in touch with me they would have only this mobile number, they don't have my old one which I gave when I registered with CIFAS. I use mobile phone with 2 sim cards.
This morning while I was sleeping received a call from this very bank saying that they need to ask me a few question just to make sure the application is genuine. They asked for the last 2 letters of my postode, my mother's mayden name and my date of birth - the exact details I'd given yesterday while opening the account. I confirmed everything and that was it the bank said it won't be a problem to open the account. 2 hours later I received another call from the exact person I tried to open the account with, saying that my account can't be open and I ask why and he told me that he doesn't know and that is a good idea to check my credit report. I suddenly realized that there's something wrong here and went through the call history. The first phone call that I received was on my old phone number which I did not give to the bank while the second one was from my new number which I gave to the bank. Both calls were from unknown number.
I went to the bank and I was told that they don't know who called me at first and can't do nothing about it.
Do you think the main bank bureau has taken my old phone number from CIFAS to call me and see if it was really me or it is something to do with fraudalent activity?
I know the post is long and probably overwhelming to read, but any help or advice would be appreciated.
Thanks!

gunsandbanjos

Yes the bank will be able to see the old number on your protective registration.

Dan83

So you try and protect yourself by joining this CIFAS, but by protecting yourself you have made is harder to get an account?

Anthorn

Dan83 wrote: »

So you try and protect yourself by joining this CIFAS, but by protecting yourself you have made is harder to get an account?

Does that mean that if we are the victim of identity theft we should not mention it and hope it goes away? In fact a CIFAS marker goes a long way towards protecting us from more identity theft.

What the CIFAS marker tells lenders and others is that since you have been a victim of identity theft they need to be careful about verifying identity. From what I read in the OP that is exactly what is being done.

grumbler

Dan83 wrote: »

So you try and protect yourself by joining this CIFAS, but by protecting yourself you have made is harder to get an account?

Yes, this is how the 'protection' is supposed to work.
Some overenthusiastic banks even make it impossible rather than harder and routinely reject applications to make their own life easier.

ChiefGrasscutter

The snag is the "no smoke without fire" problem.

Look at it from a banks' point of view. Someone has got hold of a lot of data about the person to commit full on ID fraud and can possibly impersonate them on the phone as well.
So is it possible that the person has been rather slack with the personal security and keeping confidential ID and security related stuff confidential to them.
Or that they associate with some dubious characters who know a lot about them and might have passed on that info to others to commit the ID fraud.
Or they might just be unlucky....

So one can see why the bank looks at this lot and thinks - you know - I'll think we might just give this customer a miss if you don't mind.

tonideportivo

First thanks for all responses and your time I apprecite.
Since I've been rejected to open new account, I purchased my credit report from Experian, because I'm really worried that someone has tried to open bank accounts, get loans, use credit cards on my name without my authorization. I'm really afraid to see what's inside the report, becasue I'm foreigner here and feel kind of alone and until I get this credit report probably I'll shorten my life with a few years. Does this rejection means that I have debts on my name? and also do you think my first call was from fraudsters and if it was how they could possibly know just after one day, which bank I used and what kind of data I've left there and what to ask me?

Anthorn

ChiefGrasscutter wrote: »

The snag is the "no smoke without fire" problem.

Look at it from a banks' point of view. Someone has got hold of a lot of data about the person to commit full on ID fraud and can possibly impersonate them on the phone as well.
So is it possible that the person has been rather slack with the personal security and keeping confidential ID and security related stuff confidential to them.
Or that they associate with some dubious characters who know a lot about them and might have passed on that info to others to commit the ID fraud.
Or they might just be unlucky....

So one can see why the bank looks at this lot and thinks - you know - I'll think we might just give this customer a miss if you don't mind.

Pure conjecture. Are you by any chance gifted with second sight.

Anyway look on the bright side: The CIFAS marker is removed after a year.

Dan83

Some interesting points made there, I can see it from both side's of the fence.

This is the first time I've heard of CIFAS.