Where What When

Identity Theft: Giving Credit Where It Is Not Due

When I asked my Shabbos guest Aliza* how her week was, I did not expect her startling answer. “Well,” she answered proudly, “I put two people in jail this week: one for five years, and one for 10 years!” Needless to say, the other guests, my sons, and I were all ears, as she told us her story.

The credit card company called Aliza to alert her to some recent hefty charges on her account. Minutes after she told the company that she did not make those charges, she received another call, from a police officer, who asked her if she had authorized a $1,000 charge at Sears. When Aliza said no, the police had sufficient evidence to investigate the matter further.

Apparently, a woman and two male accomplices had pulled off a classic case of identity theft. When the woman was ready to pay for her purchase, she handed the Sears cashier a South Carolina driver’s license as an ID. It had Aliza’s name on it but her own picture and date of birth. The savvy Sears cashier spotted the counterfeit ID (easy to buy or produce) and alerted security. It was not very difficult for the police to prove the stolen identity.

Aliza was subpoenaed to court twice to testify. Although the maximum sentence for identity theft is 15 years, neither of the con artists is serving that long. The third accomplice’s case has yet to be heard.

What does Aliza have to look forward to? Despite the fact that two of the three thieves are behind bars, the police told Aliza that, through no fault of her own, her stolen identity could count against her if she wishes to make a major purchase five to ten years down the road.

The Perfect Crime

Aliza is not alone. Identity theft is huge and growing. An estimated 10 million people in the United States were victims of identity theft in 2002. That number is surely greater today. The rise in internet transactions has increased identity theft. Losses rose from $851 million in 1998 to $1.4 billion in 2000, according to Secret Service statistics.

Identity theft made the news recently, when a computer disc was stolen on which are recorded the names and personal information for every veteran in the United States – over 25 million people. All these veterans are now at risk. And, with personal information worth $200 to $300 on the black market, the thieves could potentially make billions.

In identity theft, the crooks have discovered the world’s most perfect crime. No gun or getaway car is needed, and there is only five percent chance of getting caught. Indeed, it is the victim who gets into trouble. The typical victim of stolen identity must devote an average of 500 hours, over a period of years, to repairing the damage.

The three most important pieces of information a thief will try to get are your name, Social Security number, and birth date. With these numbers, anyone can open a credit card on your name and charge to it, tamper with a bank account or open up a new one, get a loan, lease or buy cars, get insurance, and so much more. They can apply for and receive a driver’s license, which allows them to enter, or help someone else enter, the country illegally or get onto an airplane in order to commit an act of terrorism.

Your personal information is vulnerable in many ways. Besides being dug out of trashcans or dumpsters, removed from your mailbox, or copied by sales clerks and waiters, it can be obtained from hospital, employment, real estate, or bank records. It may also be accessed from public sources, like the Motor Vehicle Administration.

So, you might want to think twice before throwing out that receipt, paying with a credit card, or making online purchases (see sidebar for additional tips).

It’s Everywhere

Identity theft has become so common that there is a good chance it has happened to someone you know. Here are just some of the stories I heard that occurred with people in our community.

My friend’s nephew went to the bank to make a deposit. As he was filling out the deposit slip inside the bank, he realized that he made an error. Rather than ripping it up before throwing it out, he simply crumpled it up and tossed it into the wastebasket. Someone retrieved the young man’s account number from the discarded deposit slip and tried to withdraw money from the account. Luckily, the bank caught the impostor in the act.

Businesses have been the backdrop for many cases of identity theft. I know of a case where the patron of a restaurant was victimized after paying by credit card. When he received his credit card bill he realized there were two charges for the same evening. Apparently, the waiter had charged several customers both the real charge and a phony one, which he pocketed.

In another restaurant incident, a popular Israeli restaurant was robbed of its money as well as its credit card receipts. It kindly notified its customers to be on the lookout for phony charges one their credit card bills. Then there was the employee of a large shoe store who was accused of stealing the credit card information of its customers. The store mailed hundreds of customers a letter warning them of possible false charges to their credit card accounts.

Danger on the Internet

The internet presents a broad new stage for identity thieves. One common trick is called “phishing” – as in, fishing for victims. Typically, you get a phony email with a link to a phony web site. My neighbor, and WWW columnist, Eli Pollock tells of getting an email from “eBay,” complete with its logo, informing him of “a problem with his account” and requesting him to resubmit his information. Luckily, Mr. Pollock recognized a “phishing” scheme when he saw it. The fraudulent email included a link to a web site “clone.” When you click on the link, you get to a web site that looks exactly like the real Amazon or eBay, etc., but is not the real one. There, you are prompted to submit credit card information, birth dates, etc. – either to “correct” the error or to make a new purchase. After the information is given, the criminal runs with it. Fortunately, instead of clicking on the link, Mr. Pollock closed the email, typed in the address to the real web site, and inquired about the nonexistent “problem.”

Staying Safe

Legitimate web sites have informed their patrons that they will never request private information via email. If you do receive such an email, call the company. Never provide the requested information. If you are in doubt about a web site, look at the web address. A secure web site will begin with https:// in lieu of http://, and will feature a small image of a lock on the lower right screen. (This is a clue to safety, not a guarantee.) Another way to ensure safe transactions on the internet is to use online payment services like PayPal or stored-value cards (cards loaded with a specified dollar amount). Hopefully, the future will bring other methods. For instance, smart cards – cards that act as credit, debit, and/or stored-value cards – are being used in other countries and will soon be more widespread in the U.S.

When paying by credit card, still the most prevalent method of paying for internet purchases online, keep the following tips in mind: Use the latest internet browser, look for digital certificates that authenticate the entity you are dealing with, read the privacy policy to make sure that your personal information won’t be sold to others, and use only one credit card for all your online purchases. Don’t use obvious passwords like your mother’s maiden name or the last four digits of your Social Security number. And never give out passwords or user ID information online unless you know whom you are dealing with and why they need it. Keep records of all your internet transactions, and after you have made online purchases, check your email for merchant confirmation.

If It Happens to You

You may first become aware that you are the victim of identity theft when you receive a telephone call from a creditor, a review of your credit report, or a visit from the police. Reporting the crime to the police and obtaining a police report or case number is the first thing to do if you have been targeted. Credit card companies, banks, and others will want to see this report to ascertain that a crime has actually occurred.

Next, immediately contact your credit card issuers, close your existing accounts, and get replacement cards with new numbers. Make sure that you close all accounts that the thief has opened in your name. To maintain good credit, request that the old account be tagged with a note, “closed at consumer’s request.” It is wise to follow up your conversation with letters to the credit card companies summarizing your request in writing.

You will also need to report the theft of your credit cards and/or numbers to the fraud units of the three credit reporting bureaus: Equifax, 800-997-2493; Experian, 888-EXPERIAN; and TransUnion, 800-680-7289. It is important that you ask for your accounts to be flagged with a “fraud alert.” This is the best way for you to prevent unauthorized accounts, although it does prevent you from getting instant credit at department stores.

Keep a log of all the telephone calls you made to the various authorities and financial offices and copies of any documentation you provided to them.

Notify the Social Security Administration’s Office of Inspector General if your Social Security number has been fraudulently used. You may file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) by contacting the FTC’s Consumer Response Center. Although it does not have the authority to bring criminal cases, it assists victims by providing information to help resolve financial and other problems that can result from identity theft. The FTC’s toll-free number is: 877-FTC-HELP (382-4357).

With the age-old “occupation” of theft taking new forms, we innocents must change, too. Awareness is a big factor in protecting our identity and security. By staying informed and taking some basic precautions, we will be doing our best to stay one step ahead of the villains.

*Name changed to protect identity

SIDEBAR

Protecting Your Identity

You can never completely protect yourself from identity theft; however, you can make yourself less attractive to thieves by making it more difficult for them to access your information.

• Only give out your Social Security number if it is absolutely essential.

• If unwanted, pre-approved credit card offers arrive in the mail, destroy them immediately. If you don’t want the three major credit card bureaus to sell your name to these people, you can put in this request by calling (888) 5OPTOUT. This will remove your name, for two years, from mailing and telemarketing lists that come from TransUnion, Equifax, Experian, and INNOVIS.

• Do not put any information on your checks other than your name, address, and telephone number. Guard your checkbook.

• Shred or black out any documents containing sensitive information.

• Do not carry around your Social Security card, passport, or birth certificate.

• Every year, review your credit report for confirmation that no new credit cards or accounts have been issued to someone else.

• Never give personal information over the phone to someone you don’t know.

• Do not mail bills or documents containing personal data, like tax forms or checks, from your personal mail box.

• Review your monthly credit card statement each month to make sure that all the charges on it are yours.

• If you are denied credit, find out why. It may be the first indication that someone has stolen your identity and is racking up charges in your name.

• Investigate immediately if a creditor or merchant calls you about charges you did not make.

• Make sure to guard your deposit slips. With your vital account information on them, they can be used to withdraw money from your account.

?Margie Pensak – 2006

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Article List - June 2006