<prompt> Human: I, in NY, received this letter in the mail from William Fudge, INC about a student loan unfamiliar to me. According to letter I have 30 days to respond, otherwise the debt is legitimate to them. The last thing I want is a judgment against me and my wages garnished. Is it safe to ignore this letter or how do I go about responding and rectifying this before its too late? Ive done some reading and found this sample validation letter via another post on this rpersonalfinance board, is this template good enough to get the ball rolling on this debt or is there a more effective one floating around this board?  <response>: First, pull your credit report and verify that you have not been the victim of identity theft or a victim of a bank error.That is a fine template. If you are sure they have the wrong person and you never cosigned on a loan, it is fine to tell them that and to leave you alone. Also, I would put in a paragraph where to reach you in writing and only to contact you by mail. This will give you coverage if you have to sue them under the FDCPA for harassing phone calls to you, your employer, your familyfriends, andor neighbors. They do this sometimes. They tell the people they cant tell what it is about, but just that they are trying to get a hold of you. Everyone knows it is for debt collections. 