Online Credit Card Help

How Does Identity Theft Impact Consumers

August 30th, 2007 | by HelpingU |

Surveys in the USA from 2003 to 2006 showed a decrease in the total number of victims but an increase in the total value of identity fraud to USD $56.6 billion in 2006. The average fraud per person rose from $5,249 in 2003 to $6,383 in 2006.

A 2003 survey from the Identity Theft Resource Center found that :

• Only 15% of victims find out about the theft through proactive action taken by a business
• The average time spent by victims resolving the problem is about 40 hours
• 73% of respondents indicated the crime involved the thief acquiring a credit card
• The emotional impact is similar to that of victims of violent crimes

In a widely publicized account (on which a movie was based), Michelle Brown, a victim of identity fraud, testified before a U.S. Senate Committee Hearing on Identity Theft. Ms. Brown testified that: “over a year and a half from January 1998 through July 1999, one individual impersonated me to procure over $50,000 in goods and services. Not only did she damage my credit, but she escalated her crimes to a level that I never truly expected: she engaged in drug trafficking. The crime resulted in my erroneous arrest record, a warrant out for my arrest, and eventually, a prison record when she was booked under my name as an inmate in the Chicago Federal Prison.”

In Australia, identity theft was estimated to be worth between AU $1 billion and AU $4 billion per annum in 2001.

In the United Kingdom the Home Office reported that identity fraud costs the UK economy £1.7 billion although privacy groups object to the validity of these numbers, arguing that they are being used by the government to push for introduction of national ID cards.

Confusion over exactly what constitutes identity theft has led to claims that statistics may be exaggerated.