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Identity Theft 20X Bigger Problem Than Reported
Jason Lee Miller
Staff Writer
2006-04-10
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A new report issued by the US Dept. of Justice's Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) reveals that the Federal Trade Commissions (FTC) initial 2004 identity theft report missed severely missed the mark, according to the National Crime Prevention Center (NCPC).
The FTC reported in its Consumer Fraud and Identity Theft Complaint Data that there were only 246,847 complaints filed in 2004. But a report released this month by the BJS says that 3.6 million households, or about 3 percent of all US households had been the victim of at least one type of identity theft during a six-month period in the same year.
"The new data proves that identity theft is not only one of the fastest growing crimes in America, it is also one of the most underreported and misunderstood ones.' said Al Lenhardt, president and CEO of the National Crime Prevention Council. "Because of the nature of the crime, victims can go about their daily lives never knowing their identity has been stolen until they get a phone call from creditors regarding an account they never opened or they are denied credit because of bad accounts in their names"
The NCPC says that identity theft can take many forms, from gathering personal information from discarded financial statements to fraudulent e-mails "phishing" for Social Security numbers and credit card numbers by posing as legitimate businesses or financial institutions.
Stolen personal information can be used for things other than financial reasons. Criminals use this information to get government documents, to claim a different identity when accused of a crime, or sell the information to be used in fake identification.
The NCPC advises consumers to destroy unneeded personal documents (bank statements credit card bills etc.), to never respond to emails asking for sensitive information, and to take advantage of free credit reports that credit institutions are required to provide annually.
Also, if you think you have been victimized, report suspicious activity to one of the major credit bureaus, close potentially exploited accounts, file a police report, and file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission.
About the Author:
Jason is a graduate of the University of Kentucky. He covers business, technology, and security issues.
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