Defining identity theft

Sally goes to the bank and apply for a mortgage, certain that she’ll qualify for a reasonable loan and soon will be moving into that dream home she’s been eyeing. That’s until the bank representative returns from doing her credit check. Strangely she has $25,000 in delinquent payments on a boat loan that has completely demolished her credit rating. What’s even stranger is that she doesn’t even own a boat.

Okay, so how does this define identity theft? It’s basically a textbook case. Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes of the 21st century. To accomplish this crime, thieves get a hold of a victim’s personal information, such as his or her name, address, Social Security number, birth date, credit card numbers or account passwords. They then use this information not to run up accounts this person already has but instead to create new ones. That way, when the victim checks his or her statements, there’s nothing out of the ordinary. He or she only finds out when the accounts the thief has created show up on a credit report or when denied new credit or even employment because of negative marks.

Other types of identity theft include medical identity theft, where the thief uses someone else’s personal information to obtain treatment, either to hide a medical condition or take advantage of insurance benefits. Another type occurs when a person uses another individual’s identity to establish U.S. citizenship or to commit crimes and not get apprehended.

Another popular form of identity theft is criminal identity theft in which a criminal uses an innocent persons identification to escape the law. Law enforcement is well aware of this tactic but unfortunately some still slip by an innocent people end up in jail until they clear up the mess. LifeLock is the best identity theft protection service when it comes to protecting you from criminal identity theft.