For example, it was news to me that only 20 percent of identity theft involves credit card fraud.  According to numbers recently released by the Federal Trade Commission, identity thieves use stolen information in a variety of ways.  Without giving criminals any new ideas, let me just say that becoming a victim of ID theft can mess up your whole life, not just your credit score.

Another surprising reality:  Only 11 percent of identity theft is committed by high-tech means.  In fact, 48 percent is committed by a person known to the victim.  Taken together these two pieces of information say that the secretary at your insurance agent’s office or your wife’s ne’er-do-well cousin is more likely to steal your identity than is some pimply hacker in former East Germany.  Even if you shred every piece of paper, always look over your shoulder at the bank, and touch a computer, you could still become a victim.  Unless you monitor everyone you do business with (and all their employees) and every person you know, you are vulnerable.

Identity theft become so common and continues to grow because it is an easy crime to commit and a difficult one to catch.  Incidents of fraud commited by persons using stolen identities increased by 22 percent between 2007 and 2008 alone. As a matter of fact, the occurence of identity theft has risen steadily for ten years.  With the economy being what it is, a continuation of this trend seems likely.  

People who commit this crime are not your standard criminal.  Often they see ID theft as almost a “victimless crime” since recent fraud protection legislation puts most of the financial responsibility on lenders.  Criminals — many of whom are just desperate — move quickly once they have your information.  The average fraud takes place within a week of the stealing of personal information.

The damage happens fast, but repairing it takes an average of 70 aggravating hours.  Sometimes the damage is never undone completely.  Some victims do not find out that they are victims until months or years after the criminal has stolen their identity.  Sometimes the IRS audits a victim for income earned by the criminal, perhaps a felon who used the victim’s identity to get a job.  Other victims get a rude awakening when it turns out that the thief has committed other crimes using their identity.  Can you imagine learning about a criminal record (yours) that you had no idea existed?  It happens.

Prevention is the best medicine.  Identity theft is a lot like a disease in that preventing it is preferable to treating it.  If you  are unlucky enough to get the disease, early diagnosis is essential to successful treatment.

That brings me to a bit of good news: Tools have been developed to help you protect yourself.  Look for those in a future article, or just click the link at the bottom of this article to try it for yourself for free.

Whatever you do, do not take this lightly!  If you have anything to lose, someone is trying to take it.

Now a new fear has raised its head because of the recent federal and the state laws that go into effect on January 1, 2008. For years anyone in the country illegally could (and still can) purchase any type of document on the street from some vendor. These fake documents can range from a Social Security card, drivers license, green card or practically anything else people are willing to pay for.

Recently the Arizona Republic ran a three-page article (August 19, 2007) on how easy these documents were to obtain. Arizona and Phoenix are both rated #1 in identity theft. Arizona police have seized 2,134 fraudulent documents in the last two years. And note, that’s just what they found, not what’s out there. Further the Arizona Republic says police have received 3,400 identity-theft complaints from January 1, 2006 through June 30, 2007. Is Arizona unique? Hardly, your city is the same.
According to the Arizona Republic the authorities fear the fake identity industry will grow as migrants look for ways to circumvent the state’s new employer-sanctions law and a new Bush administration crackdown on illegal workers.
With the job markets for illegal immigrants closing the police statewide are looking for more identity thefts in order for illegal immigrants to obtain authentic numbers. “It’s growing and it’s pervasive,” says Lt. Giles Tipsword of the Phoenix Police Department’s property crimes bureau. “This is a multimillion-dollar industry”.

To give some idea of the size of this industry look at these figures:

· $1.5 million dollars in cash seized from fraudulent-document makers operating in Arizona in the last 2 years

· 491 fake green cards

· 487 Social Security cards bought by undercover officers

· 172 drivers licenses bought by undercover officers

· 147 computers seized

· 217 people arrested

· And you know they didn’t get them all, that goes without saying.

Arizona’s new employer-sanctions law requires companies to verify worker eligibility through a federal database. Lawmakers in other states are taking steps to make it more difficult for illegal immigrants to get fake documents. And under new rules by the Bush administration in August employers face prosecution if they don’t fire workers whose names and Social Security numbers don’t match.

Nobody expects the fake document industry to dry up and disappear. If anything, those in the know say they expect it to get bigger and more sophisticated as criminals who make fake documents adapt to meet the demand. The database can’t flag documents made with stolen identities, where the names and numbers match.

According to Leesa Berens Morrison, the director of the Arizona Department Homeland Security, “There is a good potential for an increase in identity theft and also an increase in the manufacture and sale of fraudulent documents.”

In July, Arizona Governor Napolitano signed a tough employer-sanctions law aimed at turning off the job magnet that draws so many illegal immigrants. That law which takes effect January 1, 2008 revokes the business license of employers who knowingly hire illegal workers a second time.

It also requires the more than 150,000 licensed Arizona employers to run Social Security and other data for new employees through the federal Basic Pilot Program, an electronic verification system. For the record Arizona businesses employ about 1.6 million workers.

The Basic Pilot Program is designed to determine whether an employee is authorized to work in the U.S. As a result, local, state and federal authorities anticipate a rise in identity theft.

They expect to see fake-document makers morphing into large-scale criminal enterprises producing high quality fraudulent documents made with real names and real Social Security numbers stolen from someone else. The trick here is not to let yourself be one of those!
Identity Theft Protection

Undocumented immigrants frequently use illegally obtained identification numbers to gain employment. Victims of this type of identity theft may not suffer financial harm initially because of its intended use. However, down the road that person may decide to see if they can get a credit card, or buy a house or car – do you see where this is going? They become you! Even if they don’t it will still take you many hours to unravel the web they will have woven.
Here is what you can do to protect yourself.

· The first thing you should do is subscribe to LifeLock. There is no finer protection available. And all for about $10 per month. The information is on our website http://www.1-800BadCredit.com

· Review all bank and credit card statements monthly.

· Notify banks or credit card companies immediately of any unauthorized activity.

· Write “Ask for photo ID” next to your signature on the back of your credit cards.

· Ask your credit card company to stop sending blank checks with statements.

· Carefully review your credit reports. When you subscribe to LifeLock they will order these for you.

· Keep documents with personal information, credit card account information and PIN numbers in a safe place.

· Use a credit card, not a debit card when ordering on-line or by phone. Credit cards offer greater protection to consumers.

· Guard your Social Security number. Never carry your Social Security card with you.

· Do not give out your Social Security number unless it is required for employment, bank account or other legitimate purpose.

· Do not put your Social Security number on your driver’s license.

According to the U.S. Postal Service, one reason is the carelessness of how many of us handle sensitive documents. One of the best investments you can make for your home or office is a paper shredder. There are people who make a living out of looking for a copy of someones un-shredded bank statement, credit card bill, tax return or any number of documents with sensitive account numbers!

This article is an attempt to educate you of those dangers and give you some genuine facts and a solution or two. If you have ever known someone who had their identity stolen then you know what we are about to tell you is true.

Last year alone, more than 9.9 million Americans were victims of identity theft, a five billion dollar crime wave!

The number of id theft victims and their total losses are probably much higher. Itâ??s hard to pin down, because law enforcement agencies may classify id theft differently â?? it can involve credit card fraud, Internet fraud, or mail theft, among other crimes. It can even involve your credit report because when you order a copy of yours unless you request that only the last 4 digits be listed, the entire number is there just waiting to be stolen! I know this myself because I recently ordered my credit report be mailed to me and there was my entire social security number on EVERY page for all to see!

The FTC (Federal Trade Commission) reported that only four percent of victims cited stolen mail as the source of personal information. Even so, U.S. Postal Inspectors, charged with protecting the nations mail system from criminal misuse, are leaders in the fight against identity theft.

What Should I Do If I Am A Victim of Identity Theft?

According to the FTC, if you are a victim of identity theft there are four steps you should take as soon as possible, and keep a record with the details of your conversations and copies of all correspondence.

Place a fraud alert on your credit reports, and review your credit reports.

Fraud alerts can help prevent an identity thief from opening any more accounts in your name. But one is too many.

One of the best favors you can do for yourself is order LifeLock the guaranteed Identity Theft program. When we set our site up we decided to only recommend vendors that we had confidence in personally.

What sold us on LifeLock? The fact that their founder and CEO Todd Davis does their advertising and gives his Social Security number in all their ads. When I first heard this I figured it had to be an advertising ploy. After further checking them out both my daughter and I both signed up. They have lived up to everything they said and as a bonus we stopped getting those pre-approved credit card offers and the majority of our junk mail also stopped.

Here is what LifeLock says about themselves:

Stop Identity Theft. Guaranteed.

By now youâ??ve heard the stories about individuals whose identities have been stolen by identity thieves. Theyâ??re not pretty stories . . . people working for hundreds of hours over many years to get their lives back in order, even innocent individuals ending up in jail! We can protect against this ever happening to you. Guaranteed. Up to $1 million.

LifeLock doesnâ??t just report unauthorized use of your credit information, we prevent it by working with the credit bureaus to make sure youâ??re contacted to approve any credit transaction before it takes place. We also remove your name from pre-approved credit card offers and junk-mail lists, where identity theft often gets started.

Weâ??re the leaders in proactive identity theft protection as youâ??ve probably seen in coverage in The Wall Street Journal and Chicago Tribune, and on MSNBC, CNN, and many other national news outlets. Weâ??re so sure of our system our CEO confidently publishes his own Social Security number in all our ads.

Is this fraud alert something you can do yourself? Yes however since this is not a priority with most people it will get put off until its too late. Then you have to un-do what could have been prevented in the first place for approximately 33 cents a day. Thats pretty cheap insurance. This is an investment in protecting your peace of mind and your good name as well.

If youâ??ve already become the victim of id theft you can contact them for help on getting your good name back!

With the increase of identity theft, I wouldnt put it off another day. Once your identity is compromised it can take months or years to get it fixed. Contact LifeLock today.

For more information on Identity Theft, Click Here

You heard right. Identity Theft is THE fastest growing crime wave in America. Why? Because it’s easy and doesn’t require someone to break into your home to make off with the goods. They can get them right out of your trash!

According to the U.S. Postal Service, one reason is the carelessness of how many of us handle sensitive documents. One of the best investments you can make for your home or office is a paper shredder. There are people who make a living out of looking for a copy of someone’s un-shredded bank statement, credit card bill, tax return or any number of documents with sensitive account numbers!

This article is an attempt to educate you of those dangers and give you some genuine facts and a solution or two. If you have ever known someone who had their identity stolen then you know what we are about to tell you is true.

Last year alone, more than 9.9 million Americans were victims of identity theft, a five billion dollar crime wave!

The number of id theft victims and their total losses are probably much higher. It’s hard to pin down, because law enforcement agencies may classify id theft differently – it can involve credit card fraud, Internet fraud, or mail theft, among other crimes. It can even involve your credit report because when you order a copy of yours unless you request that only the last 4 digits be listed, the entire number is there just waiting to be stolen! I know this myself because I recently ordered my credit report be mailed to me and there was my entire social security number on EVERY page for all to see!

The FTC (Federal Trade Commission) reported that only four percent of victims cited stolen mail as the source of personal information. Even so, U.S. Postal Inspectors, charged with protecting the nation’s mail system from criminal misuse, are leaders in the fight against identity theft.

What Should I Do If I Am A Victim of Identity Theft?

According to the FTC, if you are a victim of identity theft there are four steps you should take as soon as possible, and keep a record with the details of your conversations and copies of all correspondence.

Place a fraud alert on your credit reports, and review your credit reports.

Fraud alerts can help prevent an identity thief from opening any more accounts in your name. But one is too many.

One of the best favors you can do for yourself is order LifeLock the guaranteed Identity Theft program. When we set our site up we decided to only recommend vendors that we had confidence in personally.

What sold us on LifeLock? The fact that their founder and CEO Todd Davis does their advertising and gives his Social Security number in all their ads. When I first heard this I figured it had to be an advertising ploy. After further checking them out both my daughter and I both signed up. They have lived up to everything they said and as a bonus we stopped getting those pre-approved credit card offers and the majority of our junk mail also stopped.

Here is what LifeLock says about themselves:

Stop Identity Theft. Guaranteed.

By now you’ve heard the stories about individuals whose identities have been stolen by identity thieves. They’re not pretty stories . . . people working for hundreds of hours over many years to get their lives back in order, even innocent individuals ending up in jail! We can protect against this ever happening to you. Guaranteed. Up to $1 million.

LifeLock doesn’t just report unauthorized use of your credit information, we prevent it by working with the credit bureaus to make sure you’re contacted to approve any credit transaction before it takes place. We also remove your name from pre-approved credit card offers and junk-mail lists, where identity theft often gets started.

We’re the leaders in proactive identity theft protection as you’ve probably seen in coverage in The Wall Street Journal and Chicago Tribune, and on MSNBC, CNN, and many other national news outlets. We’re so sure of our system our CEO confidently publishes his own Social Security number in all our ads.

Is this fraud alert something you can do yourself? Yes however since this is not a priority with most people it will get put off until it’s too late. Then you have to un-do what could have been prevented in the first place for approximately 33 cents a day. That’s pretty cheap insurance. This is an investment in protecting your peace of mind and your good name as well.

If you’ve already become the victim of id theft you can contact them for help on getting your good name back!

With the increase of identity theft, I wouldn’t put it off another day. Once your identity is compromised it can take months or years to get it fixed. Contact LifeLock today.