Identity Theft
March 19, 2013: Having recently surpassed drug trafficking, Identity Theft is now the fastest growing crime in the United States according to Holly Stevens and Christian Rogner, of The American Identity Theft Council. Stevens and Rogner work with a number of businesses on compliance issues, specifically those that deal with personal identifiable information. Their presentation to the membership on Identity Theft and informed us that no one is immune. Identity Theft has been the #1 consumer complaint for 13 years in a row according to the Federal Trade Commission. To put this into perspective, over 400,000 dead people opened bank accounts last year.
Stevens and Rogner explained that there are seven (7) different types of Identity Theft:
Financial Identity Theft is the most well-known type and occurs when someone obtains access to another’s bank account or credit card number. Consequently, a person’s life could be turned upside down when – upon being denied a mortgage to buy their first home or a student loan to continue their education – they learned an identity thief had stolen their identity.
Medical Identity Theft is when someone uses another’s healthcare information. As Rogner and Stevens informed us, this is a large market due to the fact that thieves think a person does not look into depth at their medical records. As a result of this type of crime, one’s credit can be destroyed. The Federal Trade Commission statistics show that in 2009, 300,000 Americans were victims of Medical Identity Theft. As a result, this is now one of the top five (5) issues for Federal Government.
Criminal Identity Theft is when a criminal uses an individual’s name and information when they are arrested for a crime. In this case, the Identity Theft victim may not know that there is a warrant for arrest issued under his/her name. Unfortunately, the trouble of clearing one’s name within the criminal justice system is primarily on the victim.
Child Identity Theft: Over 10% of children in the United States are victims of Identity Theft. According to Rogner and Stevens, “These children have credit files that are in pristine condition.” They gave an example of an 18-year old student who tried to open her first credit card when she started college. To her surprise, thieves had incurred $1.5 million in debt with 42 accounts, using her name. The criminals defaulted on all credit cards, and this student is still working on the issues with her credit. Rogner and Stevens made it clear “to tell your children never to give up their social security number without your permission and to check their credit reports on a regular basis.” In order for a parent to check a child’s credit report, a parent should call all three (3) credit bureaus and ask what is required since it changes each year. When asking for your child’s credit report, the answer you want from the bureau is that “We have nothing on file.”
Driver’s License Identity Theft occurs when a thief obtains an individual’s drivers license number or work ID (which may often provide entry to restricted areas). This can result in serious security breaches in the workplace.
Synthetic Identity Theft is the newest form of Identity Theft and “is highly sophisticated.” This type of crime occurs when the thief takes pieces of information from several victims and combines the data to create a new person. Although this is challenging to prevent, “E-Verify is starting to help with this problem”.
The presenters referenced “The Michelle Brown Story” (which can be found at http://www.tinyurl.com/michellebrownstory) where Ms. Brown ultimately had to prove that she was herself. It all began when Michelle Brown walked into an office one day to fill out a simple rental form, then handed it to the receptionist. Michelle soon began receiving hefty bills for services and merchandise she never purchased. It did not take her long to realize someone had stolen her identity. When a warrant was issued for her arrest, she ultimately appealed to the United States Senate for more concise identity theft laws.
Social Security Identity Theft occurs when a criminal uses an individual’s Social Security Number or tax ID number. In South Carolina, 80% of taxpayer records (3 million taxpayer records from the past fourteen (14) years) to include credit and debit card numbers have been exposed. As a result, many South Carolina taxpayers may be victims of an international identification attack. South Carolina is providing one (1) year of credit monitoring with Experian for taxpayers. Stevens and Rogner provided the following advice for those affected by this crime:
1. “You need all three (3) credit bureaus to review your credit because each bureau does not communicate with one another.” South Carolina has hired a consultant to conduct a security review and has spent $25 million in the process. While Experian is providing credit monitoring for South Carolina taxpayers, Stevens and Rogner said that “this is not enough and there are other ways that thieves can steal your identity.” A person is allowed up to four (4) credit checks or “soft hits” on his/her credit report per year (when the individual contacts the credit bureaus not when a business conducts a credit check).
2. Restrict information you give out to a business or a service provider even if you feel uncomfortable asking why they need your information. The presenters gave the example of medical providers who frequently ask for all identifiable information. They suggested making a copy of your driver’s license and blacking out any unnecessary information.
3. Always review bills, bank statements, and medical records. Your medical records are as important as tax records. Contact credit bureaus and “do all you can to slow crooks down.” The average amount stolen from Identify Theft victims is $92,893.00 and it takes on average 600 hours of the victim’s time to restore their credit.
When asked if Identity Theft Insurance is valuable, the presenters stressed the importance of purchasing insurance where all three (3) credit bureaus monitor your credit 24 hours a day/seven (7) days a week. They also said to ensure that the insurance can provide full restoration with full access to investigators who will take the file and do the work for you, should a crime be committed.
Last but not least, the Medical Information Bureau (MIB) is available for any individual who has applied for individually underwritten life or health insurance in the last seven years. If you qualify, there is no charge to request a free copy of your MIB Consumer File once per year directly from MIB using their toll free line (866.692.6901) or their online process.
Reported by Abby Saunders, Keyway Committee