(This story was first published in June 2015. It has been updated.)

Here we go again. Another data breach.

This time, it’s LabCorp. Federal officials say the personal information of about 7.7 million patients was exposed after a data breach at a bill collecting vendor.

This one comes on the heels of Quest Diagnostic’s breach last week. It said about 12 million patients might have had medical financial, medical and personal information stolen.

When crooks get their hands on your personal information, you could end up having trouble with your credit, your medical records, your tax returns and more.

Here are nine steps to take if your personal information is stolen.

1. Check your credit reports: You can get a free copy of your credit reports once a year through annualcreditreport.com, and you may get it for free more often if your personal information has been stolen. Review the report for any accounts you don’t recognize.

2. Take advantage of credit monitoring: Breached companies often tell affected customers they’re eligible for a free credit monitoring service. These will generally track inquiries to your credit reports and notify you of any changes. Some even offer to monitor public databases and websites for your personal information.

3. Freeze your credit: You can place a freeze on your credit reports, which will make it harder for a thief to open new credit in your name. If you take this step, the credit bureaus won’t release your credit report without your consent and you’ll receive a special password to use if you decide to release your credit info to someone. This will add a few extra steps if you decide to apply for new credit, but it’s worth the trouble. Also know a freeze will be free if you’re a fraud victim. You can reach Equifax at 1-800-525-6285, Experian at 1-888-397-3742 and TransUnion at 1-800-680-7289.

4. Use fraud alerts: If you place a fraud alert on your credit file, companies that request your credit report must take extra steps to verify that it’s really you asking for your information to be released. If you provide a telephone number to the business, for example, the business must call you to verify whether you are the person making the credit request, the Federal Trade Commission says on its website. You can request fraud alerts for free from the credit bureaus. When you ask one bureau, it’s required to notify the other two.

5. Change your passwords: You should change all your passwords, even for accounts that have nothing to do with the business that was hacked. Make the change for any account that’s associated with your email address, including online banking, credit card, mortgage and investment accounts and even websites where you shop and store your credit card information. If you can change your user name, do that, too.

6. Change account numbers: For any account that you believe could be compromised, request a new account number. Let them know your personal information was stolen. Remember to give the new number to any businesses that take regular automatic payments from that account.

7. Contact MVC: The state’s Motor Vehicle Commission doesn’t offer a fraud alert service, but you should still contact the agency. If someone has a reason to fear that they are a victim of identity theft, misuse or fraud that involves documents issued by the MVC, that person can come into either the Paterson or Trenton MVC agency to begin the fraudulent MVC document process. Bring any evidence of fraudulently issued MVC documents with you to the Paterson or Trenton agency. For more information, call the MVC general information number at (609) 292-6500.

8. Be tax smart: File your tax return as soon as possible. This is good practice whether or not you’re the victim of a data breach. If a scammer has your personal information, he could file a fake return in your name to claim a refund. If that happens, your refund could be significantly delayed.

9. Don’t get fooled: After a breach, be on the lookout for tricksters who may use the breach to fool you. They may impersonate the breached entity via regular mail, email or telephone contact in an attempt to get more of your personal information. If someone reaches out to you, don’t share anything. Contact the organization with a number you confirm independently - don’t count on any phone number given to you. That way, you can confirm whether or not the communication is real.

For more information on protecting yourself from data breaches, visit the Federal Trade Commission’s web site at ftc.gov.

Have you been Bamboozled? Reach Karin Price Mueller at Bamboozled@NJAdvanceMedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @KPMueller. Find Bamboozled on Facebook. Mueller is also the founder of NJMoneyHelp.com. Stay informed and sign up for NJMoneyHelp.com’s weekly e-newsletter.