Running head: IDENTITY THEFT 1
Identity Theft:
Targeted Towards College Students
Lawren Linehan
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
IDENTITY THEFT 2
Abstract
Identity theft is a prevalent issue in society, especially amongst college students. College students are often considered easy targets because of their lack of knowledge on the issue, risky behavior, and excessive use of social media and the Internet. There are multiple ways that identity theft can occur. The average citizen doesn’t easily recognize some of these ways. This white-collar crime is extremely common and affects a large number of people each year. Education on this topic can help college students recognize the
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1). College students are at an increased risk of identity theft because our educational system fails to teach personal finance. Collegians participate in risky transactions, are carefree with their personal information, are uneducated about how identity theft occurs, and know little about its ramifications.
How Identity Theft Happens Stealing an identity is becoming increasingly easy due to technological advancements, but this crime does still happen using traditional methods. People don’t even think about identity theft until it’s usually too late. With the proper education, most ID theft cases can be prevented, but the methods of how it occurs need to be understood first. Personal information is frequently obtained from social media sites and online purchases. A study done by the University of Missouri-Columbia concluded that almost 30% of college students can’t identify a secure website (Norum & Weagley, 2006, p. 54). For presumably being the most tech savvy generation, that statistic is shockingly high. Not being able to recognize a secure site from an unsecure one increases the risk of having credit card numbers, names, and addresses stolen while making online transactions.
IDENTITY THEFT 4 Phishing is another common form of theft. Phishing is when someone uses a technique such as keystroke logging or fake
While identity theft was present in society previous to the appearance of the internet, this medium has provided thieves with an intriguing method to steal identities from people without even having to leave their house. "Today, more and more people engage in online financial activities such as shopping, banking, investing, and bill paying." (Understanding Identity Theft) While this reflects positively on people's lives by saving them significant time, it also exposes them to a world of
Every minute, about nineteen people fall victim to identity theft. Identity theft is the fraudulent use of a person’s private information; typically for financial gain. Frank Abagnale Jr. was notorious for using various identities to receive numerous benefits. Abagnale’s identity wavered depending on the career he chose. This bewildered investigators and caused the prolonged search for Frank Abagnale Jr. As technology advances; identity theft will continue to flourish throughout numerous infrastructures. Identity theft hastily becoming one of the largest growing crimes in America. However, there are numerous ways to protect yourself from becoming a victim to this malicious threat. By inspecting your purchases on the internet, keeping your personal information safe,
Have you ever received a credit card bill at the end of the month with a ridiculous amount of money needed to be paid that you never spent? This is because of identity theft. The FTC estimates that each year, over 9 million people are affected by identity theft. According to Sally Driscoll, this is because almost anyone with a computer and a slight bit of computer knowledge can pull off identity theft. Experts also claim that identity theft is the fastest-growing crime in the world. Identity theft is a global problem that cannot be stopped without effective measures. The problem is, effective measures are very hard to come by when dealing with identity theft because almost any security protocol can be by-passed.
Student Answer: There are several methods to a crook use to steal your identity. Some crooks are using credit cards and drivers licenses with identities lifted from a stolen or forged passports a crook can be one that is pilfering your credit card number and charging merchandise to your
According to an online source regarding internet fraud, “tax identification numbers, Social Security numbers, driver’s license information, fingerprints, and similar private and confidential information are now more accessible than ever before” (Saunders). Identity theft is a matter of the lack of security that technology provides and the failure of people to use it safely. With social media at its peak, outsiders can stalk unsecured profiles online and know complete biographies in minutes. An estimated 40,000 people in the United States fall victim to crimes like identity theft every year (Saunders). This high number is most likely due to the lack of precautionary measures taken by people when using technology and the failure of the government to prevent such crimes.
In American society, there a fast growing white-collar crime that is becoming more and more popular among criminals. This white collar crime is call identity theft. Thousands of people have their identities stolen every year. Identity theft happen when criminals get a hold and use other people persona information such as credit card numbers, bank accounts numbers, insurance information and social security number to purchase good and other services fraudulently. More than 9 million American are victimizes by identity theft each year. With this number being so high it is evident that identity theft is one of the fast- growing crimes to hit the United State. Three reason why identify theft if being such a fast- growing crime in the United State is because more people credit card information is being stolen, more people are shopping online and more medical information is being stolen.
Identity Theft is the use of another person's personal information to commit fraud. They can take the person’s name, social security number, credit card number or even your driver's license number.”The thief may also open telephone and utility accounts, take out loans, rent an apartment, or buy a car. In most cases, the thief fails to pay bills for items and services bought in the victim’s name” ("Identity Theft). They can retain the information by stealing mail or wallets. Application theft occurs when the theft opens a bank account or credit cards in another person's name. Victims are usually unaware of the problem for months, they often use addresses from other places. The other type of identity theft is account takeover, this occurs when the theft receives access to the victim's existing bank account or credit card. Due to legal protections, victims of identity theft usually do not have to pay back the charges created by the identity theft. However, actions like this can damage your credit score dramatically. It is recommended that you check your credit reports often. Since the growth of cell phones, there has been an increase in identity theft. Identity theft can result in a threat to a victim's personal safety. A most recent study wanted to determine how cell phone use is affected by attitudes toward privacy and identity theft. The research questions concerned the extent to which participants
The first thing is, what identity theft is. Identity theft is a term that is used to refer to
In the Coloradoan Newspaper, Luanne Kadlub, a media relations manager at Better Business Bureau (BBB) emphasizes the importance for college students to learn how to protect their personal information from identity thieves. She demonstrates through statistics that the number of victims from 2010-2014 has increased. Kadlub illustrates that there were 8.1 million identity thefts in 2010. However, according to a study made by Javelin Strategy and Research, the number of victims increased to 12.7 million in 2014. In the article, she discusses different suggestions about how college students can protect their personal information from thieves. For instance, she says that students must be aware of the people who have access to their personal information. Moreover, Kadlub suggests having strong password and installing and anti-virus to protect
General Purpose: To inform the class about identify theft, how to prevent being a victim and how it can happen to anyone. Specific Purpose: The class will be able to prevent being a victim of identity theft and be more precautious. Thesis: Identity theft is a rising crime in the country and is up to you to avoid identity theft if you know how to protect yourself against it. Audience Analysis: My audience’s factors are that mostly are social media users; young adults and they are mobile users.
Identity theft is “ The use of one's private or personal information to obtain financial benefits…”(identity-theft." Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 17 Nov. 2015).
Identity theft is the fastest growing fraud crime in America (Finklea, 2009). Gaining knowledge in preventing theft will better the economy and lower the crime rates in America. There are reported 9.9 million victims of identity theft and this number is increasing rapidly as the years go on. It has been reported that an estimate of fifty billion dollars has been charged to our consumers every year due to identity theft (Finklea, 2009).
In today's society, there is a white-collar crime that has greatly risen in popularity among criminals. This crime is identity theft. Hundreds of thousands of people have their identities stolen each year. Identity theft is when these criminals obtain and use consumers personal information such as credit card numbers, bank account numbers, insurance information, and social security numbers to purchase goods or services fraudulently. According to the Federal Trade Commission, over 1.1 million people were the victim of identity theft. With this number, it is very evident that identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in our country. This paper will attempt to more thoroughly define identity theft. It will
Identity theft continues to be a problem in the United States, yet research on identity thieves is limited. Both the theoretical and empirical literature on identity theft is in their infancy. As a result, not surprisingly, not much is known about this crime and its victims.
The United States Department of Justice defines Identity Theft and Fraud as, “… terms used to refer to all types of crime in which someone wrongfully obtains and uses another person's personal data in some way that involves fraud or deception, typically for economic gain” (U.S. Department of Justice, 2012). An individual’s personal data such as: Social Security number, bank account information, credit card numbers, or telephone calling card number¬ may be used by criminals to personally profit at your expense. In many cases, a victim's loss not only includes out-of-pocket financial losses, but substantial additional financial costs and time repairing and correcting credit histories and erroneous information. To assist with my research for this paper, I chose two books written from different perspectives. First, I sought out a book to provide a comprehensive review of identity theft history; methods used to steal identities, consequences of having your identity stolen, and prevention techniques from an individual or business perspective. Next, after developing a strong baseline on identity theft, I searched for a reference book which offers a comprehensive review of the concepts of computer crimes, relevant laws, and methods practiced by investigators to trace, capture and persecute identity theft