<prompt> Human: I want to keep this as brief as possible. Im 23 now and was around 19 when all of this happened. Once my family moved to our newest house, my dad used my name for the cable without my knowledge. Once he fell behind on the bill he decided to switch providers in my brothers name and start fresh. I guess with interest the bill got out of hand and it now says I owe Verizon 3,000. Im currently looking to get a house with my girlfriend and the mortgage guy told me thats a big ding on my credit that would need to be fixed. While I know this is technically identity theft, I dont want my old man to go to jail. Ive read plenty of stories where this happens. My dad is 63 years and has bone cancer, and Im not honestly sure how much time I have left with him and would hate for that to happen. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!  <response>: He doesnt have to go to jail, but you probably do need to report it to the agency. Otherwise, theres no way for the debt collector or the CRA to know that your identity was stolen. 