Identity Theft is a crime in which an impostor obtains key pieces of personal identifying information (PII) such as Social Security numbers and driver's license numbers and uses them for their own personal gain. This is called ID Theft.
It can start with lost or stolen wallets, pilfered mail, a data breach, computer virus, phishing, a scam, or paper documents thrown out by you or a business (dumpster diving).
This crime varies widely, and can include check fraud, credit card fraud, financial identity theft, criminal identity theft, governmental identity theft, and identity fraud.
- Identity theft is "an absolute epidemic," states Robert Ellis Smith, a respected privacy author and advocate. "It's certainly picked up in the last four or five years. It is nationwide. It affects everybody, and there is very little you can do to prevent it and, I think, worst of all—you can't detect it until it's probably too late."
- Some law-enforcement authorities call identity theft "the fastest growing crime across the country right now". In fact, identity theft is the most called-about subject on the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse's telephone hotline. "Most victims don't even know how the perpetrators got their identity numbers," says director Beth Givens. Such fraud may account for as much as 25% of all credit card-fraud losses each year.
- For the criminal, identity theft is a relatively low-risk, high-reward endeavor. Credit card issuers often don't prosecute thieves who are apprehended. Why? The firms figure it's not cost efficient. They can afford to write off a certain amount of fraud as a cost of doing business.
Articles and related links on what to do if you are a victim of identity theft...