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| Sholeh Patrick |
Female thieves steal identity
Identity thieves tend to be strangers and, more so than for other crimes, women. Researchers at the Economic Crime Institute at Utica College, whose members include heads of private industry as well as government, were recently given access to Secret Service identity theft case files over a six-year period.
The study authors say the results will likely be used to help develop suspect profiles. Some of the findings so far fly in the face of common stereotypes and beliefs regarding this type of crime.
• 92 percent of identity thieves were unknown to the victim. Prior research suggested up to half were committed by people close to the victim.
• 36 percent were committed by women, in several cases as part of a husband-and-wife team
• Many were committed using high-tech means, such as stealing company databases. Of those, 34 percent were committed by an employee, more often in retail
• Only 9 percent was done through use of the mail, again less than previously thought.
• The average loss was $30,000 -- higher than in previous studies
• Computers were used in about 50 percent of cases
• Many crimes were discovered and reported by unrelated parties, such as a coworker. In one case, an ambulance worker noticed proof of multiple identities for the same patient
While one of the more comprehensive so far, this study was not fully representative. The Secret Service is not the only agency working on identity theft (they typically get the larger cases), and they turned over 700 files -- a fraction of all identity theft committed from 2000 to 2006. Smaller identity theft cases are more often completed by someone known to the victim, according to James Van Dyke, a researcher for California-based consulting firm Javelin Strategy & Research.
ECI's examination of identity theft cases is ongoing. The average case takes two years to complete, and the Secret Service's ID theft caseload doubled in 2007.
Shred credit/debit receipts and documents with personal information, don't give out personal information over the phone to strangers, and don't trust those "prize winner" mailings. For a reminder of other safety precautions see www.identity-theft-tips.com, or www.ftc.gov for more information. And don't forget to opt out of all information sharing; read those brochures that come with the bills.
Sholeh Patrick is a columnist for the Hagadone News Network. Send e-mail to sholehjo@hotmail.com.
