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The realization that identity theft was a real problem was brought to my attention when the son of a close friend went to purchase a car. When he applied for the car loan he was told that he had a credit problem and his loan request was denied. This was a complete surprise to him. As far as he knew his credit record was outstanding. He discovered he was a victim of identity theft! Identity Theft - Economic FraudThere is a problem plaguing corporate America today. And it is a serious enough problem that could have repercussions on the very nature of our economy. This is a problem that can strike any one of us who ever held a credit card or a bank debit card or ever shopped online. The problem is one that has come to be known as identity theft. And the repercussions are more than mere identity. Estimates of the financial fall out of identity theft range from a few billion dollars a year to as much as 480 billion dollars! And experts in the field of identity theft only claim that it is growing by the day. Identity theft first made an appearance in the news headlines when the odd shopper or credit card holder reported the loss of a small amount of money. Frequently, this was discovered to be related to fraud more than identity theft. One particular case the made the headlines pertained to a man who had been buying pornography on the Internet and had used his wife’s credit card. When he was found out, as he ultimately would have been found, he cried Identity theft and lodged a complaint. Turns out the man had not even bothered to cover his tracks. The IP address of his computer was tracked to the websites he had visited and the hoax of identity theft was quickly discovered and plugged. But there are several genuine cases of identity theft that occur on an alarmingly frequent basis. A recent news report mentioned the theft of a laptop computer from the home of a retired banker that had the credit card details of over one thousand of the bank’s clients. Why the retired banker had the information was irrelevant. What was relevant was that the theft was discovered in time to prevent any large scale Identity theft. But the thieves have been getting smarter and better. One of the more common methods of identity theft nowadays involves fraudulent retailers who set up dummy retail outlets on the banking network and try out stolen credit cards for nominal charges. Once they are approved, they typically make a large withdrawal from a nearby automated teller machine. But as the perpetrators of identity theft get smarter, the banks too have begun installing security features that make it more and more difficult for the fraudsters. Today’s network security systems are smart enough to enable bankers to spot the first instances of identity theft almost as soon as the theft occurs. But a lot more needs to be done to restore the faith of the general public in the infallibility of their credit cards. You can do you part in reducing the incidence of identity theft by becoming knowledgable about identity theft and how you can protect yourself from becoming the next identity theft victim. The above is only a snippet to read the full article, click here!
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Site MenuMore ArticlesMy friend, who unfortunately discovered that he was a victim of identity theft, soon found that correcting the record was a major hassle. The lesson he learned was that it is better to prevent identity theft then to try and correct the record later. So with that mind, I present this information to you so that hopefully you will not become another identity theft victim. We often take our liberties for granted. What you know life to be can suddenly change if you've been a victim of identity theft. While you've been busy with your day-to-day life someone could have stolen your personal information and racked up debts or committed fraud - all with your name on it. What happens then can be anything from being denied employment, credit or even being arrested for a crime you didn't commit. Identity theft is that serious. Victims of identity theft can spend years paying back debts or fighting to restore their credit as well as their reputation. Finding out you are a victim of identity theft can be frightening and a source of anxiety even after you've resolved the issue. Don't be complacent, learn about identity theft and what you can do to lessen your changes of becoming another identity theft victim. |
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