What is Identity Theft?
Identity theft is the premeditated assumption of another person’s identity.
Premeditated means you thought about it and planned to do it. It doesn’t mean
being mistaken for someone else, although that could become identity theft if
you decided to exploit the case of mistaken identity. It is normally done for
the purpose of stealing from that person, or from third persons. When someone
steals your identity and charges things to you, he doesn’t really care whether
you pay for it or not. It’s fine with him if the provider of goods, services or
money takes the hit, but it’s also fine with him if you do.
Video: Identity Theft (TV Ad)
How does someone steal my identity?
In order to steal your identity the criminal needs to obtain your identifying
personal information. This can include your name, address, and telephone, but
those items are not sufficient to steal your identity. Two really key items are
your date of birth and social security number (SSN). Other desirable pieces of
information include your driver’s license number and your account numbers. (Bank
accounts, credit card accounts, etc.) Once the thief has this information he
applies for new credit using your identifying information. When the new credit
has been approved the thief uses the credit card or credit line to make
purchases, get cash advances, and so forth. Because the information is used
online in many cases, the thief doesn’t need to use some of the older tools for
identity theft, such as obtaining a birth certificates for someone else, then
using that to get a driver’s license or social security card.
How does the thief get my identifying information?
There are a variety of ways thieves get this information. It varies from low-tech means such as going through your trash for credit card receipts, canceled checks or bank/credit card statements, to high tech efforts such as phishing and child fraud. Phishing involves sending out emails asking you to “verify” existing accounts by giving your date of birth or social security number. Some efforts are simple emails, while others involve giving you links to sites that look almost exactly like the real thing. Amazingly, even after all of the publicity regarding identity theft people continue to be taken in by these tricks. You should know that bona fide companies do NOT send out “verification” emails. If you get one, it’s someone phishing for your information.
Video: How to Protect Yourself from Identity Theft
What is the difference between identity theft and fraud?
Fraud is normally directed at you. The perpetrator tries to trick you directly into giving them something of value. Identity theft is designed to use your good name and credit to get some third party to give something of value to the thief (which, of course, you will then be charged for).
What are some specific things to look out for?
In addition to phishing and using birth certificates to steal adult identities, criminals may choose to use a minor’s identity. A minor may not have good credit, but usually they have no bad credit. Since the credit reporting agencies usually have no way to establish age, they generally accept whatever age is alleged. If you allege an age old enough to get credit, but young enough that lack of credit history is not necessarily suspicious, the situation is ideal because the minor doesn’t know to check his/her credit to guard against identity theft, and the scam can continue for some time.
Can I protect myself?
You can protect yourself in a number of ways. You should safeguard any identifying information including destroying (not throwing away) documents containing identifying information, cutting the numbers out of documents you do need to keep, and monitoring your credit regularly. One of the safest and most convenient ways to do this is to pay a credit monitoring service.
The first and most important step is realize that identity theft can happen to you and watch you credit carefully. Remember, you’re not paranoid if someone is not out to get you. Identity thieves most certainly are out to get you.
