What is Identity Theft Anyway?

By Michael Gentleman

Imagine opening the mailbox and finding bills for things you never bought, credit card statements for places that you have never shopped or been to. Imagine getting denied for health insurance because your records indicate some kind of chronic disease that is expensive to treat. All those things, and more, can happen if you become a victim of identity theft.

Identity theft has no prejudices, nor does it target a specific geographical area. It can target anyone, any age, at any time. Identity theft is defined as any activity in which someone obtains information about another person and uses it some way that involves fraud or deception, typically for economic gain. In many cases, the damage caused by these thieves is more than just the out-of-pocket costs, but immense additional cost when trying to restore reputation and correcting the erroneous information in the person’s credit reports, medical records, etc.

A thief will first take the victim’s identity, and then begin to use it to finance their own needs. Whether the theft is done by applying for credit and loans, credit cards from banks and retailers, steal money from existing accounts, establish accounts with utility companies, rent an apartment, file bankruptcy or even obtain a job, no type of identity theft is minor. To perform identity theft, there are only a few bits of information needed. A thief will typically hunt for your social security number, your birth date, phone number, address, and other details. Once they obtain this information, it is possible for them to go as far as obtaining a false driver’s license and using it to begin their crimes.

Lower tech identity theft can be as simple as getting your information and using your credit cards to make purchases online. The impersonator can get information about you from many places. A doctor’s office, health insurance carrier, lawyer, a dentist, a school, and many more. By obtaining simple information over the phone they can begin to piece together the parts for the bigger crime. According to filife, only about 3% of the US population is affected by identity theft, and a quarter of those are only credit card fraud, and not real identity theft. Real identity theft is when multiple infractions with different accounts, loans, etc are made in your name.

Though not as common as many people think, precautions (like keeping your personal information personal and confidential) should be taken to keep yourself safe. It is better to error on the side of caution.

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Mike writes about credit identity protection. If you are interested in protecting your identity then visit his website for further information. Credit Identity Protection Guide can protect your identity.