Identity Theft: A Special Report

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Identity Theft A Special Report

• What you should know about identity theft
• How you can protect yourself
• What to do if it happens to you
• QUIZ

This Special Report on Identity Theft is made
available as a public service by the nonprofit
ICFE.  It is intended for educational purposes
and no endorsement of any product and/or
commercial company is intended.
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Identity Theft, What Is It

• Identity Theft tops the list of consumer
  complaints to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
  according to its annual report, detailing
  consumer complaints about identity theft, and
  listing the top 10 fraud complaint categories
  reported by consumers.
• The dollar loss consumers attributed to the fraud
  they reported grew from 160 million in 2001 to
  343 million in 2002.

Pamphlet Free from the FTC
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Identity Theft Understand it

• How the bad guys are getting good data in early
  2005.
  
•  
• Phishing                          2.4
•  
• Dumpster Diving            2.8
•  
• Spyware                          6.4
•  
• Mail theft                       7.8
•  
• Friends/Relatives           9.6
•  
• Clerk/Sales People       10.6
•  
• Skimming                    11.9
• Lost/stolen cards            28. 

Source  Javelin Strategy Research
                Pleasanton, CA
                2005 Identity Fraud Survey Report
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Identity Theft Understand it

• It helps to understand prevention better by
  understanding how Identity theft is committed. It
  is simply done by co-opting a name,
  
• Social Security number,
• credit card number,
• or some other piece of personal information of
  another individual for the thiefs own use.

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Identity Theft, What for

• Once Identity thieves fake an identity, they
• Open new credit card accounts.
• Change mailing addresses to existing accounts.
• Establish utility services in your name e.g.
  Cellular phones, cable, gas and electric etc
  
• Open bank accounts and write bad check against
  that account in your name.
  
• File bankruptcy to avoid debts, evictions and
  foreclosures.

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Identity Theft, What Happens

• When Identity Theft happens, the victims will
  suffer from ruined credit.
  
• Frequently, the way some people learn their
  identity has been stolen is from their credit
  reports, when they see new accounts listed they
  did not open.
• Identity Theft may affect some or all of the
  following IRS, DMV, Passport, SSA. USPS,
  credit/debit cards, bank accounts, insurance,
  utilities, the Internet and bankruptcy.

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Identity Theft, What to do

• File a written police report.
• Notify all creditors by phone and follow-up with
  a certified letters.
  
• Close all credit card accounts closed at the
  consumers request.
  
• Stop payment on any fraudulent checks.
• Get a new ATM card and PINs.
• Contact the three major credit reporting
  agencies.
  
• Report fraudulent use of SS number to National
  Fraud Hotline.
  
• Notify the utilities, and service providers.
• Notify the US Postal Service.
• Notify the Department of Motor Vehicles.

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Identity Theft, What Next

• If you think you may be a victim of identity
  theft,
  
• contact
• The Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
• to report what happened. You can call the FTC's
  ID Theft Hotline-1-877-IDTHEFT (438-4338),
  
• or use the FTC's online ID Theft Complaint form
  for up-to-date information about how to work with
  credit bureaus and law enforcement agencies to
  reclaim your identity.

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Identity Theft, What Next

• Social Security Administration
• Contact the SSA for a replacement card if your
  Social Security card was lost or stolen.
  
• A new Social Security number in certain
  circumstances.
  
• To help correct your earnings records.
• Office of the Inspector General
• Contact the SSA to report Social Security number
  misuse that Involves buying or selling Social
  Security cards.
  
• It may involve people with links to terrorist
  groups or activities.

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Identity Theft, What Next

• The Federal government and numerous states have
  passed laws prohibiting identity theft. Anyone
  who intentionally uses the Social Security number
  of another person to establish a new identity or
  defraud the government is breaking the law.
• The Social Security Administration says  "The
  SSA is making sure that Social Security numbers
  are less accessible by strengthening the
  processes for issuing new Social Security numbers
  and replacement Social Security cards.
  Additionally, the SSA is working with other
  federal agencies to find ways to detect and
  prevent identity theft."

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Identity Theft, What Next

• To get more information about Social Security
  numbers and identity theft, order free, the
  following publications
  
• FTC Information
• ID Theft-When Bad Things Happen To Your Good
  Name
  
• When Someone Misuses Your Number (05-10064)
• Social Security-Your Number and Card (05-10002)

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Identity Theft, In Conclusion

• Just because the new FACTA law addresses Identity
  Theft in more detail than the previous Fair
  Credit Reporting Act, it does not mean consumers
  should let their guards down.  To avoid becoming
  an identity theft victim, stay alert and review
  your credit reports semiannually.

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More information
Find more information about identity theft from
the following  http//www.consumer.gov/idtheft/ 
 http//www.usdoj.gov/criminal/fraud/idtheft.ht
ml  http//www.usps.com/postalinspectors/id_intro
.htm  http//www.usdoj.gov/criminal/fraud/idquiz.
pdf  http//www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oig/mis
used/idtheft.html
This Special Report on Identity Theft is made
available as a public service by the nonprofit
ICFE.  It is intended for educational purposes
and no endorsement of any product and/or
commercial company is intended.
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Identity Theft Risk Assessment Quizas taken from
Identity thieves use many ways of getting your
personal financial information so they can make
fraudulent charges or withdrawals from your
accounts. Do you know how you can reduce the risk
of becoming a victim of identity theft? Take this
simple quiz, and see how you score
When I keep my ATM cards and credit cards in my
wallet, I never write my PIN (Personal
Identification Number) on any of my cards.
Yes or No. Reason If you lose your ATM or cr
edit card, identity thieves or other criminals
can have instant access to your bank or
credit-card account.
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Identity Theft Risk Assessment Quizas taken from
When I leave my house, I take with me only the
ATM and credit cards I need for personal or
business purchases. Reason If your wallet o
r purse is lost or stolen, and youre carrying
fewer cards, youll have to fewer calls to banks
and credit-card companies to report the losses,
and the odds of fraudulent charges in your name
will be lower.
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Identity Theft Risk Assessment Quizas taken from
When I get my monthly credit-card bills, I always
look carefully at the specific transactions
charged to my account before I pay the bill.
Reason Someone who gets your credit-card num
ber and expiration date doesnt need the actual
card to charge purchases to your account. If you
dont look closely at your credit-card statement
each month you might not have any recourse if
fraudulent transactions go through and you dont
dispute them promptly with your credit-card
company. As soon as you see unauthorized charges
on your statement, contact the credit-card
company immediately to report them.
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Identity Theft Risk Assessment Quizas taken from
When I get my monthly bank statements,
credit-card bills, or other documents with
personal financial information on them, I always
shred them before putting them in the trash.
Reason Some identity thieves arent shy about
dumpster diving literally climbing into
dumpsters or rooting through trash bins to look
for identifying information that someone threw
out. Buying and using a shredder on your home or
office is an inexpensive way to frustrate
dumpster divers and protect your personal data.
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Identity Theft Risk Assessment Quizas taken from
When I get mail saying Ive been pre-approved for
a credit card, and dont want to accept or
activate that card, I always tear up or shred the
pre-approval forms before putting them in the
trash. Reason If you throw out the documents w
ithout tearing them up or shredding them,
dumpster divers can send them back to the
credit-card company, pretending to be you but
saying that your address has changed. If they can
use the account from a new location, you may not
know the accounts being used in your name until
you see it on a credit report.
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Identity Theft Risk Assessment Quizas taken from
If the volume of the mail I get at home has
dropped off substantially, I always check with my
local post office to see if anyone has improperly
filed a change-of-address card in my name.
Reason Some identity thieves may try to take
over your credit-card and bank accounts, and
delay your discovery of their criminal
activities, by having your mail diverted to a new
address where they can go through it without your
knowledge. Your local post office should have on
file any change-ofaddress cards, and can respond
if you find that someone is improperly diverting
your mail.
Yes No
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Identity Theft Risk Assessment Quizas taken from
If I think that I may be a victim of identity
theft, I immediately contact The Federal Tr
ade Commission to report the situation
and get guidance on how to deal with it.
The three major credit bureaus to inform them
of the situation. My local police departm
ent to have an officer take a report. Any
businesses where the identity thief
fraudulently conducted transactions in my nam
e.
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Identity Theft Risk Assessment Quizas taken from
Reason Identity theft is a crime under federal
law, and under the laws of more than 44 states,
that carries serious penalties including
imprisonment and fines. To help law enforcement
in investigating and prosecuting identity theft,
the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) maintains a
national database of com plaints by identity
theft victims. The FTC, through a toll-free
hotline (1-877-ID-THEFT), can also help you
decide what steps to take in trying to remedy the
situation and restore your good name and credit.
Credit bureaus should also be notified so that
they can flag your credit report. Local police,
by taking a report and providing you with a copy,
can help you show creditors that an identity
thief has been conducting certain transactions in
your name and without your permission.
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Identity Theft Risk Assessment Quizas taken from
How did you score on this quiz? If you checked
even two or three No boxes, it means that you
need to take more of the precautions described in
this quiz. Remember that identity thieves, unlike
robbers or fraudsters, dont have to have any
personal contact with you in order to commit
their crimes. The more you do to protect your
personal information, the lower the odds that
youll become a victim of identity theft. For
more information about identity theft, go to
The Department of Justices Identity Theft
Web-pages, at www.usdoj.gov/criminal/fraud/idtheft
.html and The Federal Trade Commissions Ide
ntity Theft Web-pages, at www.consumer.gov/idthe
ft. Last updated 7/12/02 Source usdoj/crm/frau
d/dlj