IDENTITY THEFT

Sheriff's Department officials say it remains vital that residents continue to take the necessary precautions to protect themselves from becoming a victim of postal crime.

• Identity theft is the fastest growing crime in America.
• Last year, 9.9 million people were victims of ID theft.
• Fraud rings pay up to $1,000 per box of stolen checks.
• It takes 3-5 Years to recover from identity theft.
• Usually costs $6500 to recover from theft.
• 85% of Americans believe they will be victims of ID theft this year.
• 10 million became victims last year alone.
• Mail and ID theft are the #1 crimes (in America) and growing.
• If you have your identity stolen, it can take up to 600 hours to clear your name - if you're lucky!
• Identity theft has totaled nearly $50 billion in fraudulent transactions.
• Identity theft remains the #1 concern among consumers contacting the Federal Trade Commission.
• Approximately 7 million people became victims of identity theft in the prior 12 months. That equals 19,178 per day, 799 per hour, 13.3 per minute.
• The incidence of victimization increased 11-20% between 2001-2002 and 80% between 2002 -2003 (Harris Interactive). This same study found that 91% of respondents do not see an "end to the tunnel" and expect a heavy increase in victimization. 49% also stated that they do not feel they know how to adequately protect themselves from this crime.
• Victims now spend an average of 600 hours recovering from this crime, often over a period of years. Three years ago the average was 175 hours of time, representing an increase of about 247%.
• Based on 600 hours times the indicated victim wages, this equals nearly $16,000 in lost potential or realized income.
• Today the business community loses between $40,000 - $92,000 per name in fraudulent charges.
• Today victims spend an average of $1,400 in out-of-pocket expenses, an increase of 85% from years past.
• Approximately 85% of victims found out about the crime due to an adverse situation-denied credit or employment, notification by police or collection agencies, receipt of credit cards or bills never ordered, etc. Only 15% found out through a positive action taken by a business group that verified a submitted application or a reported change of address.
• The executive office for U.S. Attorneys estimated cost of prosecuting a white-collar crime case was $11,443. The Secret Service estimates the average cost per financial crime investigation is $15,000.The FBI estimates the average cost per financial crime investigation is $20,000 .
• A preliminary study done by ITRC shows that the majority of ID theft criminals are repeat offenders.
• The average arrest rate (according to law enforcement) is under 5% of all reported cases by victims
• The 2002 FTC Annual Report revealed: Washington D.C., California, Arizona, Nevada, Texas, Florida, New York, Washington, Maryland, Oregon (top 10 locations in # of victims in order)