WHEN BAD THINGS HAPPEN TO YOUR GOOD NAME

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "WHEN BAD THINGS HAPPEN TO YOUR GOOD NAME"

Elijah Morton
5 years ago
Views:

2 WHEN BAD THINGS HAPPEN TO YOUR GOOD NAME

3 Corporal Mark Kincaid Hampton Police Division Community Relations Unit

4 What is Identity Theft? Someone uses your name or personal information to: Open credit card accounts or use existing accounts Take out a loan Make a major purchase Access bank accounts File fraudulent tax returns Or even commit a crime!

5 Types of ID Theft Credit Card Fraud 28% Phone or Utilities Fraud 19% Bank Fraud 18% Employment-related fraud 13% Loan Fraud 5% Government Benefits Fraud 8% FTC Data 2011

6 More Statistics Many victims don t even know. The average time to find out you ve been victimized is 15 months! Unfortunately, many identity theft related crimes go unreported. California ranks #1 for ID theft crimes, Texas is 2nd, followed by New York and Florida.

7 How the Thief Works By stealing wallets & purses containing your information & credit & bank cards. Stealing your mail. Looking through your trash & retrieving discarded bills or credit applications (dumpster diving). Completing a change of address form, and having your mail forwarded to them.

8 Thieves also Say they work for a bank or credit reporting agency when they ask for your SSN over the phone. Pose as landlords, lawyers, or other officials who have authority to access your information. Use personal information you share on the internet.

9 How they use your information: They use your information to establish a new ID and pretend to be you. They open utility (phone, cell phone) accounts in your name. They open bank accounts and write bad checks. They file bankruptcy under your name to avoid eviction or payment of any new debt occurred.

10 How they use your information: They counterfeit checks or debit cards, and drain your bank account. They buy cars by taking out auto loans in your name. They give your name to police during an arrest. If they don t show up for their court date, an arrest warrant is issued in your name.

11 Social Security Number Be VERY cautious about giving out your SSN Do NOT carry your SS Card in your wallet. Do NOT have your SS # printed on your checks or drivers license

12 What if I become a victim?

13 Take action!!!!! File a police report & contact the Federal Trade commission. Contact the 3 major credit bureaus and have a fraud alert placed on your account. Contact creditors where fraudulent accounts were opened, or where fraudulent charges were made.

14 Why file a police report? To get a criminal investigation started. Provide some assurance to your creditors that this is a real crime, not to avoid payment. Creditors often require a copy of the police report for challenged accounts and charges.

15 Why contact the FTC? Information is entered into the Consumer Sentinel database, and may assist law enforcement in other jurisdictions on related matters. FTC has great information for ID Theft victims on what to do to clear up their credit reports & challenge fraudulent accounts & charges and what legal protections victims may have.

16 Contact the credit bureaus Equifax Experian TransUnion

17 Federal Trade Commission s ID Theft Hotline US Postal Inspection Service Social Security Administration

18 It s the law Identity Theft & Assumption Deterrence Act of 1998 (Federal law enacted by Congress making identity theft a crime) Conviction for ID theft carries a maximum penalty of 15 yrs imprisonment, a fine and forfeiture of any personal property used or intended to be used to commit the crime

19 What can you do to avoid becoming a victim of identity theft?

20 Know who you re talking to Be very careful about giving personal info over the phone. Beware of giving your personal info to a person or company that contacts you. Ask the caller to give you a number you can call to verify his identity. Ask the caller to send you the info in writing. To reduce the number of sales calls you receive, register on the National Do Not Call list by calling or

21 Use the Internet carefully Use only secure websites. Always use a credit card when shopping online so you will have the protection of the Fair Credit Billing Act.

22 What are other ways information is Phishing gathered? The act of sending an to a user falsely claiming to be an established legitimate enterprise in an attempt to scam the user into surrendering private information that will be used for identity theft. Skimming The act of copying and or reusing electronic information stored on a chip or magnetic strip of a card. E-Scam Fictitious s asking for help or contributions. Web Surfing Websites that track your movement from webpage to webpage.

23 Phishing

25 E-Scam

Web Surfing Some websites will track what websites you visit clicking from one page to another. Usually occurs when you click on a link inside a webpage.

26 Web Surfing Some websites will track what websites you visit clicking from one page to another. Usually occurs when you click on a link inside a webpage. FTC is currently working on laws to force websites to notify you of when data on your web surfing is collected. FTC is currently working on laws allowing persons to examine what information is gather on them from background investigation sites. Use browsers with InPrivate or other privacy protocals to mask your movements through the internet. Microsoft s Internet explorer 8 has such a feature.

27 Questions?

Identity thieves use a variety of ways to gain access to your personal information:

How Identity Theft Occurs Identity thieves use a variety of ways to gain access to your personal information: Steals information from employers, bribe an employee who has access records, or hacks into