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Many
Concerned About Identity Fraud A
national survey shows that 73% of Americans believe that identity fraud is an
increasing problem, and 78% are concerned that it poses a serious personal
threat in today’s world. Also, significant misconceptions about how identity
fraud occurs and to whom victims should report it were uncovered in the
telephone survey, which included 1,000 adult Americans in all regions of the
country. Thirteen percent of those surveyed reported that they, or a family
member, have been victimized by identity fraud. The
survey was conducted for Image Data, LLC, by Opinion Dynamics Corporation, a
national research firm headquartered in Cambridge, MA. Image Data provides
high-performance loss prevention services that use image verification to reduce
fraud. “The Federal Trade Commission has labeled identity fraud as the
nation’s fastest growing crime,” comments Bob Houvener, president, CEO, and
co-founder of Image Data. “So we’re very concerned about the misconceptions
the survey revealed. If consumers don’t understand identity fraud, they
can’t take the right steps to protect themselves. Clearly more needs to be
done to protect consumers from this growing crime epidemic.” Misconceptions
According
to Houvener, the overwhelming majority of criminals obtain and use information
in face-to-face environments. Yet more survey participants were concerned about
personal information being stolen on the Internet (40%) than through the theft
of a wallet or purse (31%), mail theft (19%) or criminals going through trash
(18%). Also,
the largest number of survey participants (63%) chose the Internet as the place
criminals would be most likely to use stolen information. Telephone orders were
named by 32% of participants and face-to-face transactions and catalogues were
both named by 13% of survey participants. “Education obviously needs to be
done to inform consumers of the fact their personal data is actually more likely
to be stolen and used in face-to-face transactions than on the Internet,” said
Houvener. “Another
finding that needs to be addressed through better consumer education is that
victims most often reported identity fraud to the police or FBI,” said
Houvener. “Among those participants who had not been victims of identity
fraud, the overwhelming majority (75%) named the police and FBI as the authority
to whom they would report the problem. Only 18% said they would report the fraud
to their credit card companies and only 9% said they would report it to their
banks. “Unfortunately,
most police departments are not yet well equipped to handle identity related
crimes,” added Houvener. “Any financial irregularity should be immediately
reported to your credit card companies and your bank since it might be just the
tip of the iceberg in terms of an identity thief taking over your financial
life.” Asked
what they do to protect themselves against identity fraud, 26% of non-victims
said they are careful with personal information and effects. Shredding mail and
documents containing personal information and not giving personal information
out over the phone or the Internet were each named as protective methods by 10%,
and 6% said they monitor accounts and bills. “While people say they’re
concerned about identity fraud, they aren’t being terribly proactive about
it,” said Houvener. We encourage consumers to review their credit card bills
and bank statements every month for irregularities. Also, those pre-approved
credit card mailings we all get should definitely be shredded.” After
the Crime Among
those who had been victims of identity fraud or had family members in this
category, the most common type of fraud identified was unauthorized charges to a
credit or debit account (46%), followed by unauthorized withdrawals from bank
accounts (20%), using personal information to open other types of accounts
(13%), and using personal information to obtain new financial accounts or loans
in the victim’s name (9%). The
reported repercussions of identity fraud primarily centered on credit and loan
problems (see chart entitled “What are the Repercussions of Fraud?”). While
46% said the fraud did not cost them anything, 13% reported a personal loss of
over $1,000 and another 15% reported losses up to $1,000. Fully 81% of the
victims had reported the fraud, most often to the police or FBI. Demographically,
slightly more women than men reported being victims of identity fraud. Also,
victimization was slightly higher among those under age 35, among the best
educated, and among people earning in excess of $35,000 a year. |
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© Copyright 2001 · The Green Sheet, Inc. |
