National Crime Prevention Council
2007 –2008

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 Define identity theft
 Discuss why you should worry about it
 Examine how identity theft occurs
 Look at how identity theft has emerged
 Discuss what is being done about identity theft
 Look at ways to protect yourself
National Crime Prevention Council

What Is Identity Theft?
 One person, using information gathered from some source, takes on the identity of another person without permission and conducts a variety of activities using that identity.
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 The intent is to use that identity for personal gain, generally with the intent to defraud others.
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What Is Not Identity Theft?
 Someone using your credit card with your knowledge and consent to make a purchase
 Someone properly exercising a legally granted power of attorney on your behalf
 Someone making up a fake name and signing into a hotel—this may be a crime, but it’s not identity theft
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Why Worry About Identity Theft?
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One in 33 households discovered at least one type of identity theft during the previous 12 months.
Households with the highest incomes and those headed by persons ages 18–24 were the most likely victims.
One in five victimized households spent about one month resolving problems resulting from identity theft.
Identity theft is of greater concern to adults with older children at home (45%) than those with younger children at home
(27%).
Source: First Estimates from the National Crime Victimization Survey ,
Identity Theft, 2004, Bureau of Justice Statistics Bulletin
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Why Worry About Identity Theft?
(continued)
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U.S. adult victims of identity fraud in 2005: 9.3 million.
In 2005, total one-year fraud amount: $54.4 billion .
Women are more concerned than men on all issues measured; including all issues related to identity theft.
More than four in 10 women (42%) are very or somewhat concerned about identity theft.
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Source: Javelin Strategy and Research 2006 Identity Fraud Survey Report www.javelinstrategy.com
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Four Key Points
 People are not helpless in protecting themselves from identity theft.
 Consumers do not bear the brunt of the loss.
 Internet use does not increase risk of identity fraud.
 Seniors are not the most frequent targets of identity thieves.
Source: Javelin Strategy and Research 2006 Identity Fraud Survey Report www.javelinstrategy.com
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(continued)
 Victims of identity theft and those who know victims are far more likely to be concerned about this issue than those who have not been victims.
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• Concern among victims, 60%; versus among nonvictims, 31%
• Concern among those who know a victim, 45%; versus concern among those who do not know a victim, 32%
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(continued)
 Those who feel more vulnerable on the
Internet are concerned about identity theft at double the rate of others.
• 71% feel more vulnerable on the Internet versus
26% who are neither more or less afraid, and 38% who are less afraid than a year ago
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Why Worry About Identity Theft?
(continued)
 Deterrence and apprehension are not yet effective. Prevention is the best defense.
 There are jurisdictional problems concerning where the crime occurs.
 It is an attractive crime to criminals because of its low risk and high return.
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Highlights
 More than nine in ten Americans believe that identity theft is a “major” or “moderate” problem (93%).
 Adults with a college degree or higher are less likely than others to think of identity theft as a
“major problem” (46% of college graduates or higher versus 60% or 62% of those with
“some college/high school graduate or less).
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Highlights
(continued)
 Those who feel more vulnerable on the Internet state that identity theft is a “major problem” at a rate far higher than others (80% of those who feel “more afraid than they did a year ago” versus 53% or 47% who reported feeling “neither more nor less afraid” or
“less afraid”).
 More than one in seven adult Americans (14%) reported being a victim of identity theft and nearly a quarter of adult Americans (24%) say someone close to them has been a victim.
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Highlights
(continued)
 One in four of those who know a victim of identity theft have been victims themselves.
 Concern about identity theft does not lead to knowledge about preventing it. Those concerned about becoming victims of identity theft do not report being more knowledgeable on the subject than other Americans (57% concerned about identity theft versus all adults).
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Highlights
(continued)
 More than half of adult Americans (56%) say they know a “good deal” or “great deal” about how to prevent identity theft. Only 6% say they “do not know anything” about identity theft prevention.
 Those with higher education claim to be more aware of how to prevent identity theft than those with lower incomes (63% versus 55%).
 One in ten Americans 18–39 years old and a similar percentage of adults with only a high school education (10%) feel they “don’t know anything about preventing identity theft.”
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How Identity Theft Works
 The thief or thieves look for information in a number of ways.
• Discarded documents in the trash
• Receipts from purchases
• Lost or stolen wallets or purses
• Online “phishing” for personal data
• Stolen mail from mailboxes
• Thieves are thinking of new, inventive ways every day.
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(continued)
(continued)
 Some thieves go “wholesale” by getting lists of personal information through computer hacking, theft, or bribery.
 The information may be resold to other crooks or used numerous times by the original thief or thieves.
 Profits may be used to support additional criminal activities, such as drug use and terrorism.
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How Identity Theft Works
(continued)
 With the information that becomes available, the thief may have false ID cards made.
• A state driver’s license with the thief’s picture and the victim’s name
• A state identification card
• Social Security card
• Employer identification card
• Credit cards
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How Identity Theft Works
(continued)
(continued)
 The thief may simply begin leveraging one piece of information to obtain or establish other information or assets. These may include
• New credit card accounts
• State or local licenses
• Accounts with utility companies, apartment leases, or even home mortgages
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How Identity Theft Works
(continued)
 The thief continues to build a “persona” using the victim’s name, good credit, and even good character references. The thief never pays the bills, but the victim is left with a bad name and ruined credit.
 Eventually, the victim tries to get a new credit account and is turned down, or gets a bill for a credit card he or she never owned, or starts getting calls from bill collectors.
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How Identity Theft Works
(continued)
(continued)
 The thief might abandon the victim’s identity because he or she has “spoiled” the name of the victim (e.g., with a criminal offense or bankruptcy).
 When the crime or ruined credit is discovered, the victim is left to clean up the mess.
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How Identity Theft Works
(continued)
 The victim reports the theft to the local police and to the nation’s three major credit bureaus.
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The victim asks the credit bureaus to note the identity theft crime on his or her credit report.
The victim may need to consult with a local victims’ assistance agency or an attorney to obtain information on the necessary, specific steps in a given state.
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How Identity Theft Works
(continued)
(continued)
 The victim can also file an online report and affidavit with the Federal Trade
Commission registry at www.ftc.gov
. Go to the identity theft section.
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Where and How Do They
Get My Information ?
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 Telephone calls asking you to “update records”
 Theft of incoming bills, which show your account number
 Theft of outgoing mail and bill payments
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Where and How Do They
Get My Information?
(continued)
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Redirection of stolen mail, where the thief files a change of address on your credit card bills
“Phishing” in which the sender sends out an email or pop-up message that looks like it came from a real bank or credit card company and asks for identifying information. Legitimate companies will never do this.
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Where and How Do They
Get My Information?
(continued)
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What is “phishing”?
• The Internet is a new, convenient, and trusted way to do business, but it also has allowed criminals to create illegitimate emails or pop-up messages posing as your bank, credit card, or utility company.
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Where and How Do They
Get My Information?
(continued)
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What is “phishing”? (continued)
• Thieves might create a phony reason why you need to give them your personal information (e.g., bank routing number, Social Security number).
• They use the ease of online transactions to their advantage, hoping you will be fooled.
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Where and How Do They
Get My Information?
(continued)
More ways thieves steal personal information
 Going through trash to recover bills
 Credit card receipts that you discard or toss out with a shopping bag
 Noticing a bill you tossed in a public trash can
 Second impressions of credit cards
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 Casual use of Social Security numbers and other similar identifiers
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Sample “Phishing” Email
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How To Avoid a “Phishing” Scam
Tips from the FTC
 If you get an email or pop-up message that asks for personal or financial information, do not reply or click on the link in the message.
Legitimate companies don’t ask for this information via email.
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How To Avoid a “Phishing” Scam
(continued)
Tips from the FTC
(continued)
 If you are concerned about your account, contact the organization via its legitimate telephone number or open a new Internet browser and type in the company’s correct web address.
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How To Avoid a “Phishing” Scam
(continued)
Tips from the FTC (continued)
 Don’t send personal or financial information via email. If you initiate a transaction and want to provide your personal or financial information through an organization’s website, look for indicators that the site is secure.
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How To Avoid a “Phishing” Scam
(continued)
Tips from the FTC (continued)
 A “lock” icon on the browser’s status bar or a
URL for a website that begins “https:” (the “s” stands for “secure”) indicates that you are on a secure site.
 Unfortunately, no indicator is foolproof; some phishers have forged security icons.
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How To Avoid a “Phishing” Scam
(continued)
 Use antivirus software and keep it up to date.
Some phishing emails contain software that can harm your computer or track your activities on the Internet without your knowledge. Antivirus software scans incoming communications for troublesome files. Look for antivirus software that recognizes current viruses as well as older ones that can effectively reverse the damage and install updates automatically.
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How To Avoid a “Phishing” Scam
(continued)
 A firewall helps make you invisible on the
Internet and blocks all communications from unauthorized sources. It’s especially important to run a firewall if you have a broadband connection. Finally, your operating system
(e.g., Windows or Linux) may offer free software “patches” to close holes in the system that hackers or phishers could exploit.
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Why Is ID Theft on the Rise?
 Computers have made record keeping faster. Automation also removes human analysis, making it easier for someone to steal an identity or pose as another person.
 More and more transactions are being handled electronically, a trend that is continuing to increase dramatically.
 More computer hackers now go for monetary returns, not for the thrill of conquering another computer.
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Why Is ID Theft on the Rise?
(continued)
 Mobility means that many of us shop in stores all over our communities, regions, or the country, so we are more anonymous than ever.
 Many of us find it hard to believe that identity theft could happen to us, even though millions are victims each year.
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What Can We Do About It?
 Consumer education, like the information we’re sharing today, helps you reduce your risk of becoming a victim.
 Education is an ongoing process as new technologies and new criminal techniques emerge.
 Information about prevention and ways to stop identity theft spread quickly as well.
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What Can We Do About It?
(continued)
 New ways are being found to tighten security on electronic payment systems and to detect “out of the ordinary” purchase patterns.
 Some credit card payment systems now print only the last four digits of your card number, so that someone who steals your receipt can’t steal your good name.
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What Can We Do About It?
(continued)
 New shredders are coming into the market, making thorough document destruction easier at home.
“Don’t risk it, shred it.”
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Who Is Vulnerable?
People who
 Keep their money in bank accounts
 Use credit or debit cards
 Generate trash with unshredded paper in it
 Casually toss credit card or other receipts into public receptacles
 Get personal bills by mail or electronically
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(continued)
People who
 Don’t check their credit card reports and bank statements regularly
 Don’t check their credit bureau reports regularly
 Have unlocked, easily accessible mailboxes
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Prevention Tips
 Check your bank, credit card, and similar statements monthly. Make sure you receive them and make sure the charges are yours.
 Immediately call your bank or credit card companies if you don’t receive your bill.
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Prevention Tips
(continued)
 Consider registering with the Direct Marketing
Association to stop unsolicited credit offers.
 Never provide account information over the
Internet or the telephone unless you originated the call and unless you are absolutely certain of the party to whom you are speaking.
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Prevention Tips
(continued)
 Rip up receipts if you will not need them for warranties or returns.
 Shred any unwanted credit, loan, or credit card offers—or at least cut them up with scissors— before putting them in the trash.
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Prevention Tips
(continued)
 Do not give out your real name or other personal information in
Internet chat rooms. Use a screen name.
 Do not authorize others to use your credit cards. They may not take the same care that you do.
 Deposit mail in a U.S. Postal
Service mailbox.
 Make sure your mailbox is secure.
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Review: Coping With Identity Theft
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 File a police report immediately.
 Notify the three major credit bureaus and each of your credit or debit card issuers of the identity theft and ask that appropriate alerts and closures be filed.
 File a report with the Federal Trade
Commission’s Complaint Center and obtain an ID Theft Affidavit, which is available online at www.ftc.gov.
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Review: Coping With Identity Theft
(continued)
 Check credit reports, report any incorrect activity immediately, and ensure that a fraud alert is active on your account.
 Carry copies of documents with you—the police report, the affidavit, and any other formal records that attest to your identity—in case of emergency.
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Review: Coping With Identity Theft
(continued)
 Check court records in your general area for bankruptcies and for mortgage liens using your name. Many records are automated, which makes the job easier.
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Encourage Everyone to…
 Review their habits about handling personal information.
 Take prevention strategies to heart—and encourage others to do so.
 Speak out about the need for preventive action and laws that protect identity theft victims.
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Resources From NCPC
NCPC has a comprehensive Identity Theft campaign.
Learn how you can keep your identity to yourself. Order a copy of Preventing Identity Theft: A Guide for
Consumers or download it in PDF format.
Other resources include
 Reproducible brochures: Identity Theft
Protecting Your Privacy (PDF)
(PDF) and
 Article: Evolving With Technology
 Newspaper Mats:
Fraud
ID Theft (PDF) and Seniors and www.ncpc.org
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(continued)
 Public service campaigns that focus on cyber security and safety
 Partners including the Forum to Advance the Mobile
Experience (FAME) and the Chief Marketing Officer
Council (CMO Council)
 Tip sheets and the publication Mind What You Do
Online that can be downloaded online; report Internet crimes, and visit the security store
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Online Resources
 Federal Trade Commission: www.ftc.gov
 Department of Justice: www.usdoj.gov/criminal/fraud/idtheft.html
 Better Business Bureau: www.bbb.org
 United States Postal Service: www.usps.com
 National Criminal Justice Reference Service: www.ncjrs.gov
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Online Resources
 Many nonprofit organizations are committed to promoting prevention and recovery from identify theft. Here are a few. www.idtheftcenter.com/index.shtml
www.identitytheft.org
www.privacyrights.org/identity.htm
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2345 Crystal Drive
Suite 500
Arlington, VA 22202
202-466-6272
FAX 202-296-1356 www.ncpc.org
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Presenter Contact Information
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