Identity theft research

Identity theft is a crime whereby criminals impersonate individuals, usually for

financial gain. In today's society, you often need to reveal personal bits of
information about yourself, such as your social security number, signature,
name, address, phone number, cell number or even banking and credit card
information. If a thief is able to access this personal information, he or she can
use it to commit fraud in your name.
Armed with your personal information, a malicious person could do any number
of things, like apply for loans or new credit card accounts. It's possible they could
request a billing address change and run up your existing credit card without
your knowledge. A thief could use counterfeit checks and debit cards or
authorize electronic transfers in your name and wipe out funds in a bank
account.
Identity theft can also go beyond a monetary
your information to obtain a driver's license
that would display their photo but your
name and information. With these
documents thieves could to obtain a
job and file fraudulent income tax
returns, apply for travel documents, file
insurance claims, or even provide your
name and mailing address to police and other
authorities if involved in other criminal
activities.

impact. Thieves can use

or other documentation

Facts

In 2010, 7.0% of households in the United States, or about 8.6 million

households, had at least one member age 12 or older who experienced one or
more types of identity theft victimization.
Among households in which at least one member experienced one or more
types of identity theft, 64.1% experienced the misuse or attempted misuse of
an existing credit card account in 2010.
From 2005 to 2010, the percentage of all households with one or more type of
identity theft that suffered no direct financial loss increased from 18.5% to
23.7%.
About 7% of persons age 16 or older were victims of identity theft in 2014.
The majority of identity theft victims (86%) experienced the fraudulent use of
existing account information, such as credit card or bank account information.
The number of elderly victims of identity theft increased to 2.6 million in
2014.
About 14% of identity theft victims experienced out-of-pocket losses of $1 or
more. Of these victims, about half suffered losses of less than $100.

Half of identity theft victims who were able to resolve any associated
problems did so in a day or less.