Identity Theft

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Identity theft is the most common type of fraud, as reported to the Federal Trade Commission. Identity theft involves criminals stealing personal information in order to commit a multitude of crimes. There are several ways to commit identity theft, such as mail, telephone and online schemes, which makes identity theft that much harder to detect and prevent.


Common fraud & scams:

Personal Identity Theft  
False Company Representative  
ATM Skimmer Fraud   

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Statistics:

Losses from identity theft totaled $54 billion in 2009, according to the Javelin Strategy & Research. (Javelin 2010 Identity Theft Report, Javelin Strategy & Research, http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/javelin-study-finds-identity-fraud-reached-new-high-in-2009-but-consumers-are-fighting-back-83987287.html)

Thirteen percent of identity theft crimes were committed by someone the victim knew. (Javelin 2010 Identity Theft Report, Javelin Strategy & Research, http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/javelin-study-finds-identity-fraud-reached-new-high-in-2009-but-consumers-are-fighting-back-83987287.html)

According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Identity theft is the highest-reported type of fraud.(2007 Consumer Fraud Survey, Federal Trade Commission, http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2007/10/fraud.shtm)

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Important Change

Getting federal benefits? You must switch from paper checks to electronic payments by March 1, 2013. Going paperless with your federal benefits can help you avoid identity theft! Don’t delay! Get more information from the U.S. Treasury here: www.GoDirect.org.