Once identity thieves have your personal information, they can empty your bank account, max out your credit cards, open new accounts, and in extreme cases, a thief might give your name to the police during an arrest (Federal Trade Commission, 2015). There are several indicators of identity theft. For example, you will notice bank withdrawals that you are unable to explain, your checks are being declined at stores, unexpected calls from debt collectors about debts that aren't yours, finding unknown charges and accounts on your credit report (Federal Trade Commission, 2015). However, you are more likely to find that your identity has been stolen when your checks start bouncing or a collection agency begins to call you.
True name, identity theft means that the thief uses personal information to open new accounts. The thief may open a new credit card account, or even establish a cellular phone service in your name. Account takeover, identity theft means the imposter uses personal information to gain access to the person’s assisting accounts. The thief will change the address on the account and run up a huge bill before the persons whose identity has been stolen realizes there is even a problem. Consequently, the internet has made it easy for a person’s identity to be stolen because the transaction can be made without asking any personal information. Retrieving personal paperwork and discarded mail from trash dumpsters (dumpster diving) is one of the easiest ways for an identity thief to get information. Another popular method to get information is shoulder surfing-the identity thief simply stands next to someone at a public office, such as the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, and watches as the person fills out personal information on a form.
Figuring out if an identity is stolen is not easy only because it can be unknown until damage is dealt. This is why identity theft isn’t easy to stop. When most people report a crime, police arrive on the scene before serious damage is dealt, but when a thief steals a person’s identity, the victim can be unaware for quite some time before they realize the amount of money they lost. According to Tracey Whittaker and Anne Dilascio, in 2003, the average money lost from identity theft per person was $4,789, but in 2006 the average was less than $2000. The average out-of-pocket cost of identity theft victims in 2005 was
Becoming the victim of identity theft is never something that is a pleasant experience. Along with the fear regarding the actual event, there is also the aftermath that must be considered. It can sometimes take years to completely see the full effects of identity theft, but by learning more about the different types, it is much easier to get started making repairs.
Identity theft is when someone, without the consent of the owner, dishonestly uses, or intends to fraudulently use another individual’s personal identity. Personal identifying information can consist of an individual’s name, date of birth, driver’s license number, mother’s maiden name, state identification number, telephone number and other personal information that
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 has been a problem facing police departments recently. It is a crime in which someone obtains and uses another person's personal information in a way that involves fraud. In the United States and Canada, for example, many people have reported that unauthorized people have taken money out of their bank. In 1998 Congress made identity theft a federal offense to therefore create stricter penalties for these criminals.
Truth – Sometimes identity theft is committed by family members, friends, roommates and others who have access to your documents before it goes for shredding.
Identity fraud is use of a persons name, social security number or other personal identifying information. Once armed with this information the thief can open accounts and rack up huge debts for goods and services. These criminals also open up various accounts ranging from cell phones to bank accounts. Once these accounts are established they don’t pay the bill
The first thing is, what identity theft is. Identity theft is a term that is used to refer to
Sometimes the credit bureaus will want to open an investigation, which takes time, and sometimes the creditors want additional information from you. Furthermore, if crimes were committed under your name, you might have to submit to fingerprint testing, and the thief might have received a driver’s license, therefore the victim should also get a report of their driving records to check for accuracy. Unfortunately, a victim might experience more time and red tape to clear their name than it took the identity thief to steal and apply for new credit. Nevertheless, there are certain steps that we can take to try to keep our personal information safe.
Identity Theft is the assumption of a person’s identity in order to obtain credit cards from back account and retailers; the crime varies from stealing money from existing bank accounts; renting apartments or storage units; applying for loans or establishing accounts using another’s name (legal dictionary, 2007). Identity theft and identity fraud are terms that are often used
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).
By definition “Identity theft n. the dishonest acquisition of personal information in order to perpetrate fraud, typically by obtaining credit, loans, etc., in someone else's name; fraud perpetrated in this way. ” (dictionary.oed.com, 2007). It’s estimated that 9 million Americans have had their identities stolen each year. “According to the Secret Service, its investigations show a jump in potential losses due to identity theft, from $851 million in 1998 to $1.4 billion in 2000.” add citation from how stuff works There are many ways that thieve steal your identity, they may go through your trash, steal your wallet or purse. I will discuss a lot of the different ways in more
Identity theft is on the rise in the United States and Globally. The Federal Trade Commission advised that there are about nine million cases of identity theft. People who had their identity stolen often feel like they were violated. Any individual can have their identity compromised in numerous ways. Different institutions store personal information. There are several organizations that have social security numbers, bank account numbers, and credit card numbers. Colleges and Universities have people personal information stored in their databases that could be hacked. There are several companies that offer options to people to protect their identity. Most credit card companies offer the option of identity
Identity theft affects millions of Americans every day. Scam artists and hackers lay in wait for an unsuspecting person to get caught up their scheme through ignorance or naivety so they can take full advantage of their personal information to do as they desire with it. Problem is, it infiltrates and depreciates the integral infrastructure of our society which creates a cultural lapse through the declination of economic and cultural growth and double jeopardizes an already unstable system to the brink of its destruction. To understand how