One Simple Line of Defense

Do you know someone with an identity crisis? No, we don't mean that crazy neighbor who thinks he’s Abraham Lincoln. The identity crisis of interest here concerns the very serious crime of identity theft.

Awareness of identity theft has reached an all time high. Many people personally know someone who has been victimized. Others are aware of the problem through frequent television commercials highlighting the issue. Either way, identity theft has taken a place in the spotlight and on many consumers’ minds.

So are you worried about your vulnerability? A smart consumer will definitely show some concern and proactively minimize security flaws, even though it’s likely impossible to prevent any chance of identity theft. Consider that locking a car door does not guarantee no one will break in and steal from the vehicle; but taking a moment to secure the car will deter many casual thieves. Only someone foolish would leave the vehicle completely vulnerable with valuables inside. Similarly, sensible individuals should take note of any simple steps to help guard their identity.

One simple preventative measure involves setting up fraud alert notices on your credit accounts. This alert system doesn’t take much time or effort to set up and places a major roadblock in front of any fraudsters. If a fraud alert is enabled, when anyone tries to open up credit in your name, the lender will be notified that a phone call needs to be made before finalizing the process. The lender is expected to call the owner and get a verbal confirmation from the individual. Once the verbal confirmation has been established, the credit can be offered as would normally take place.

Consider the scenario of a thief applying for an auto loan in someone else’s name. With a fraud alert set up, a call will go out and the credit owner will be asked if they really want the loan. The loan will be safely rejected and the crime halted.

On the other hand, there are a few negatives associated with fraud alerts. The main inconvenience associated with these alerts is that instant credit becomes less than instant. Waiting for the verification call creates a more time-consuming process and demands a degree of patience. Another issue is that the fraud alert stays on a person’s record for only a limited time. Experian, one of the main credit reporting agencies, allows individuals to place an initial 90 day security alert. Once that time period lapses, the fraud alert must be renewed for the protection to continue. Long term fraud alerts are possible, but only for established victims. To qualify for a seven year fraud alert, a person must provide a valid copy of a police or law enforcement report concerning a crime committed against them.

If you want to go ahead and enable fraud alerts, consult all three of the major credit bureaus, Equifax, Experian, and Trans Union. At Experian.com, for instance, these alerts can be set up through a simple application.

Sure, a master criminal may be able to find ways around such systems. But, protecting oneself is often a matter of removing opportunities. A common house thief may be deterred by a simple alarm system sign posted at the end of your drive way. In the same way, an identity thief, testing the softness of a particular target, may look for easier prey after initially being denied credit due to the safeguard of fraud alerts.

Is Shredding the Solution?

It might seem obvious, but protecting your outgoing trash is an important step in protecting your identity. If you have decent credit, chances are good that you will receive pre-approved credit offers weekly, if not daily. A determined dumpster diver may be rewarded quickly by rifling through a person's trash.

Does it take a criminal genius to find a garbage goldmine? Not really. Under the cover of darkness, a smart thief might target affluent looking homes and throw a few bags of trash into the back of their truck. Identity thieves enjoy a perfect storm of low risk and high potential payoff when stealing trash in this manner.

To prove how lucrative dumpster diving can be for thieves, one man reported his findings after a trash dive. According to the report, he "found a clear and easily-readable copy of a bank check with all of the important information: Bank account number and routing number and name of the account holder. The account holder's social security number and small business ID number were hand written in on the top right of the check." (ComputerWorld)

So, what can consumers do to protect themselves? Shredding is a good first step; not a flawless solution, but helpful for most people. Just drop your documents into a shredding machine and breathe a little easier. Unfortunately, a criminal who is skilled at profiling different victims may be able to isolate those who pose the highest potential for profit. For these vulnerable individuals, a patient thief could theoretically take the time to piece together paper shreds and recreate the original documents. For those who demand the highest security, cross-cut shredders make it nearly impossible for criminals to recreate original documents. Generally, these high-tech shredders turn paper into tiny confetti particles.

Fastest Growing White-Collar Crime

The FBI has called identity theft the fastest growing white-collar crime. White-collar crime usually indicates that the criminal behavior is coming from someone of respectability or higher social status. In reality though, identity theft doesn't require the skills of a genius socialite; all it takes to victimize a vulnerable party is a few key pieces of information and a little boldness.

On the other hand, criminals aren't just targeting ordinary people in the community. Famous folks, targets of respectability and higher social status, have been the focus of fraudsters as well. A New York man was arrested a few years ago under suspicion of stealing many identities, among them Steven Spielberg, Oprah Winfrey and Ted Turner.

It may be surprising that the rich and famous can be impersonated along with everyday Joes, but thieves don't need to be professional actors. Much can be done under the cover of anonymity. All that is really required is an Internet connection.

Reality Check: Put Your Trust On A Diet

For the most part, we want to trust the people we live and work around. Constantly questioning the motives of everyone we come across on a daily basis can make us paranoid - not to mention bad company. Still, some things, such your social security number and other personal identifiers, are better left revealed to only a few select individuals.

When someone asks you for sensitive information, try to discern if it's really necessary to share it. Unfortunate circumstances and desperation can cause people to victimize individuals they ordinarily would never dream of hurting, such as friends and family members.

Take for example a recent case concerning a supposedly trustworthy minister, Raymond L. Clayton Sr. An 82 year old parishoner of Clayton's congregation received a strange phone call concerning an overdue credit card bill. The unfortunate grandmother soon found out that $25,000 was owed through credit cards opened in her name.

Pat Tomedi, treasurer of the congregation for 17 years, had been scammed by someone who she placed a great deal of trust. The pastor was recently found guilty and sentenced for his crime.

The purpose of this article isn't to scare people into mistrusting everyone they care about. Instead, it should encourage people to practice smart methods of minimizing their risk. A few simple preventative measures could have alerted Pat Tomedi to this violation of her trust, way before the $25,000 bill arrived. These preventative measures will be the subject of future entries at deFraud.

For the full story of Pat Tomedi and Clayton the crook, see this WNEP news article .

Identity Theft Resource Center

Have you been victimized by identity theft? Are you interested in cleaning up the damage?

The Identity Theft Resource Center (www.idtheftcenter.org) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to educating consumers and helping victims.

The website includes specific scam warnings. It is a good idea to look at their scam warnings periodically to stay on top of the latest attempts at ripping everyone off. If you encounter something strange through email or over the phone, don't hesitate to do a web search or investigation into whether the offer or correspondence is legitimate. Don't take any chances because many thieves have polished their fraudulent messages quite professionally.

Fraud Can Make You Money...Legally

Believe it or not, a person can make money from fraud and identity theft without arousing the attention of the police. Nationally and internationally, the fraud situation has spawned an entire industry.

Special fraud investigators are used by companies to track down customers who misrepresent themselves. Ignoring the problem can prove very expensive for businesses, so there is a demand for fraud specialists. Additionally, individuals having personal problems with identity theft or fraud can hire private investigators that have experience dealing with fraud related crimes.

How does a person crack into that side of the fraud business? Well, a number of colleges and universities offer degree programs in fraud investigation. Having a fraud degree on a resume will likely give a person an edge over other job candidates. Others have found success by pursuing indirectly related law enforcement or criminal justice programs.

The fraud issue doesn't look like it will be going away any time soon, but smart people looking for an interesting line of work can turn this negative issue into a positive.