New research on identity fraud shows some surprising findings about how people become targets.
The study clears up some common misconceptions about who’s at risk. For example, seniors aren’t the biggest targets and contrary to popular belief, most incidents don’t occur online.
Most people don’t realize they’re easy targets until it’s too late.
“The purse was right there literally touching my leg,” said Marcia Gorczyca, identity fraud victim.
Thieves took Marcia’s wallet right out of her purse and within two hours racked up about $6,000 in charges.
“I felt violated and it was just terrible.”
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Thousands of Oklahomans reported having their identities stolen in 2005, according to a recent report.
One metro woman hopes her nightmare with identity theft can be a lesson to everyone else.
Two years ago, somebody became Becky Pennington Moore, at least in the eyes of creditors. They opened accounts, ran up bills and ruined Moore’s credit.
“I opened this (bill) up, and it said it owed $4,033,” she said.
According to a book published by the Federal Trade Commission, Oklahomans were ripped off for millions of dollars in 2005. One person even reported getting scammed out of $1.8 million.
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Oregon - Identity theft is the fastest-growing crime in Washington County, police say.
Identity theft occurs when unauthorized persons use someone else’s bank account information or other personal information to secure loans, credit cards, checks or merchandise, said Washington County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson David Thompson.
The most effective and least prosecuted thieves get people to give up the information voluntarily. Identity thieves often attach tantalizing offers to phone calls or e-mails. Be wary of any phone call or e-mail offering anything that sounds too good to be true. Particularly popular are travel deals, pyramid schemes and prize offerings, Thompson said.
Most people are familiar with the “Nigerian” scheme, e-mail that claims recipients can share the fortune of some deposed African nobleman or politician if only they supply their personal account information to facilitate depositing the money there.
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New numbers show identity theft is a growing concern.
According to the Federal Trading Commission (FTC), out of nearly 700,000 fraud complaints across the nation this past year, more than a third were identity theft. Sixty-three percent were other kinds of fraud, with most happening over the Internet.
Consumers reported a loss of $680 million through fraud. Delmarva residents who spoke with WBOC say that they are not taking any risks when it comes to their identities and their wallets.
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U.S. consumers lost nearly $57 billion last year to criminals who stole their identities, but online fraud was the culprit in just one in 10 cases, according to a survey released on Tuesday.
The study by the Council of Better Business Bureaus and Javelin Strategy & Research showed that identity theft cost U.S. consumers 4 percent more in 2005 than the $54.4 billion it cost in 2004. The average fraud rose to $6,383 from $5,885.
Nevertheless, the number of adult Americans who learned that criminals had stolen personal data and used it to commit fraud fell to 8.9 million, or 4 percent, from 9.3 million in 2004 and 10.1 million in 2003. Data showed that people who were younger and had lower incomes were more vulnerable.
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A 19-year-old Los Angeles man, who allegedly used a legitimate company’s name to trick 2,700 people into providing credit card and personal information over the Internet, was charged with identity theft.
Ryan Daniel Hovey pleaded innocent this afternoon to 14 counts of identity theft, along with 13 counts of access card fraud, two counts of grand theft and one count of attempted grand theft.
Hovey, who was arrested last Friday, was ordered held on $500,000 bail pending his next appearance in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom on Nov. 9. Hovey allegedly collected the personal identifying information and access card numbers of about 2,200 people.
He used their personal and credit card information to make purchases of merchandise ranging from computer equipment to airline tickets, alleged Deputy District Attorney Jeffrey McGrath, head of the High Tech Crimes Unit.
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Federal authorities are investigating a Reno woman arrested on identity theft charges after she was stopped driving a stolen rental truck packed with stolen credit cards and checks, the Nevada Highway Patrol reported.
The U.S. Postal Service, Nevada Division of Investigations and NHP are investigating Michelle Anthony, 19, of Reno, said Trooper Chuck Allen, NHP spokesman. The expanded investigation involves out-of-state stolen credit cards and checks.
Anthony was stopped Oct. 25 by a trooper after she failed to stop at a stop sign at Sixth and West streets, Allen said. She had been driving a U-Haul truck with a spray-painted graffiti on its side. Allen said the truck had been stolen from a Reno service center, where it was supposed to be returned earlier that month.
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A quarter of Internet users have stopped making online purchases for fear of identity theft, according to a report issued by Consumer Reports WebWatch.
The report, issued last week, finds that 80 percent of Internet users are at least somewhat concerned that someone might steal their identity from the personal information available on the Web. Most Internet users, 86 percent, have made at least one change in their behavior because of fears of identity theft.
Of those who shop online, 29 percent say they have cut back on how often they buy products on the Internet. Thirty percent of users reveal that they have reduced their overall use of the Internet due to these fears, and 53 percent say they have stopped giving out personal information online, according to the report. More than half (54 percent) of those who shop online say they have become more likely to read a site’s privacy policy or user agreement before making a purchase.
College students are increasingly becoming victims of identity theft, prompting the Department of Education’s Office of the Inspector General to publicize the issue and crack down on crooks who use stolen information to fraudulently obtain financial aid.
Department of Education Inspector General John P. Higgins, Jr., offers a strong warning to students on how to protect themselves on a Web site devoted to the issue:”Protect your Social Security number and other personal information. Don’t let identity thieves rob you of your educational future!”
The issue was highlighted at the University recently by a security breach when the Housing Office compromised nearly 2,600 students’ Social Security numbers by accidentally storing the information on a public Web site. According to the Department of Education, 50 percent of grades nationally are posted by Social Security number.
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Forty-six state Attorneys General are calling on Congress to help protect consumers from identity theft by enacting national security breach and credit freeze legislation.
The proposed laws would require businesses entrusted with personal financial data to notify consumers if their company’s data files are breached and allow consumers to put a credit freeze on their accounts.
In the letter, the AGs point out that millions of consumers over the past year have been exposed to potential ID theft because of security breaches suffered by large financial and retail establishments.
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