The 1990's spawned a new variety of crooks called identity thieves. Their stock in trade? Your everyday transactions, which usually reveal bits of your personal
information. An identity thief obtains some piece of your sensitive information and uses it without your knowledge to commit fraud or theft.
- Bank and credit card account numbers
- Income
- Social Security Number
- Name
- Address
- Phone number
Identity theft is a serious crime. People whose identities have been stolen can spend months or years - and their hard earned money - cleaning up the mess the thieves
have made of their good name and credit record. Some victims have lost job opportunities, been refused loans for education, housing or cars, not including being arrested
for crimes they didn't commit.
Skilled identity thieves use a variety of methods to gain access to your personal information. For example: They get information from businesses or other institutions
by: stealing records from their employers, bribing an employee who has access to these records or hacking into the organizations computers. They rummage through your
trash, the trash of businesses, or dumps in a practice known as "dumpster diving." They obtain credit reports by abusing their employer's authorized access to credit
reports or by posing as a landlord, employer, or someone else who may have legal right to the information. They steal credit and debit card numbers as your card is
processed by using a special information storage device in a practice known as "skimming." They steal wallets and purses containing identification and credit and bank
cards. They steal mail, including bank and credit card statements, pre approved credit offers, new checks or tax information. The thief completes a "change of address form" to
divert your mail to another location. Once identity thieves have your personal information, they may go on spending sprees using your credit or debit cards to buy "big ticket"
items that they can easily sell.
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