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How Identity Theft Happens
Five Myths About Identity Theft
  • Only dangerous, anonymous criminals commit identity theft.
  • You should only worry about identity theft if your wallet is stolen.
  • Identity theft is easy to solve.
  • It will never happen to you.
  • More people get their identities stolen online than offline.

How Fraud Happens

Despite your best efforts to manage your personal information or keep it to yourself, skilled identity thieves may use a variety of methods to gain access to your data. Often, they:
  • Steal wallets and purses containing your identification and credit and bank cards.
  • Steal your mail, including your bank and credit card statements, pre-approved credit offers, new checks, and tax information.
  • Complete a “change of address form” in your name to divert your mail to another location.
  • Go through your trash, or the trash of businesses, for personal data in a practice known as “dumpster diving.”
  • Fraudulently obtain your credit report by posing as a landlord, employer or someone else who may have a legitimate need for, and legal right to, the information.
  • Find personal information in your home.
  • Use personal information you share on the Internet.
  • Scam you, often through e-mail, by posing as legitimate companies or government agencies.
  • Get your information from the workplace in a practice known as “business record theft,” by: stealing files out of offices where you’re a customer, employee, patient or student; bribing an employee who has access to your files; or “hacking” into electronic files.

How Thieves Use Your Information

Once thieves have your information, they often will:
  • Change your credit card mailing address by calling the issuer and pretending to be you. They then start spending on your card. Because your bills are being sent to the new address, it may take some time before you realize there’s a problem.
  • Open a new credit card account in your name, using your date of birth and Social Security Numbe. When they use the credit card and don’t pay the bills, the delinquent account is reported on your credit report.
  • Establish phone or wireless service in your name.
  • Open a bank account in your name and write bad checks, or create counterfeit checks or debit cards to drain your bank account.
  • File for bankruptcy under your name to avoid paying debts they’ve incurred using your name, or to avoid eviction.
  • Buy cars by taking out auto loans in your name.
  • Give your name to the police during an arrest. If they’re released from police custody, but don’t show up for their court date, an arrest warrant is issued in your name.

For More Information

For more information visit http://www.consumer.gov/idtheft

To test your knowledge about identity theft, take this quiz at

http://onguardonline.gov/quiz/idtheft_quiz.html