Several years ago I was a police officer, I worked in the field about four years in different positions and ranks. The term identity theft didn't exist in the law or in the general public's idea of crime. I don't know of anyone who received a call to investigate identity theft. In the last few years as technology has grown so has the threat of everyday criminals access to electronics that make it much easier to gain your private information.
In today's crime world, anyone can pay and get private information from companies on the web. A simple search of “buy social security numbers” will return sites that allow anyone to buy stolen information, including your name, your address, your credit card and social security numbers. Thieves have come up with ingenious ways to funnel this money to hinder law enforcement. One example is from The Boston Globe, “At least 45.7 million credit and debit card numbers were stolen by hackers who ... credit card numbers to buy more than $8 million worth of gift cards.”
The majority of today's identity theft complaints come from retail stores who maintain electronic records that were compromised by a stolen computer or by an insure network. However there are still a significant amount of complaints from banks, hospitals, and charitable organizations. With so much consumer information available it seems like there is no end to this crime. Increasingly companies are slow to react and issue a press release when they know their records or networks have been compromised. Its only after someone discovers their identity has been stolen do businesses come out and tell the dozens of other people affected that there may be a problem. If you try to contact a company to alert them you have an account with them you didn't authorize, they let you talk to someone who doesn't think your telling the truth. The company may ask for forms and information that are difficult to track down. In the end it is an uphill battle.
There are several companies that make claims to protect your credit by monitoring the credit reporting agencies for a fee. They claim they will be liable for up to a certain dollar amounts if your identity is stolen. This doesn't sound too bad, except is my personal information so readily available for Mr. Criminal that I need to pay a company to protect me. My piece of mind is worth a lot but the cost of a monthly service to protect my good name and credit history is just unthinkable for me.
I would like to see the federal government along with the state legislatures enact legislation that would shut down these sites or fine the server. Restrict trade with a county that refuses to work together to put a stop to identity theft. Fine businesses that allow customer records to be stolen, and levy even bigger fines against companies that don't immediately report the theft when they discover it. This issue is a major one, credit affects your and my ability to buy auto insurance, get a house, a job, to be able to borrow money when we really need it such as for health insurance deductibles. With the estimated amounts of loss in the billions each year its time someone did more than what is being done now. That's my two cents take them before their stolen and turned into a gift card.
