Identity Fraud Not Worsening, Survey Shows
A survey released by the Better Business Bureau and Javelin Strategy & Research showed that some fears regarding identity theft may be out of proportion to what is happening. Several results show that problems are not getting worse and the total number of victims is in decline.
For example, the survey revealed that the number of identity fraud victims dropped from 10.1 million to 9.3 million from 2003 to 2004; annual dollar volume is about the same at $52.6 billion; and the average time to resolve an identity fraud crime dropped by 15 percent from 33 hours in 2003 to 28 hours in 2004.
The survey also found that identity fraud through the Internet is not the worst problem. Computer crimes account for 11.6 percent of all cases of identity fraud when the source could be pinpointed, and half of these crimes come from spam. Furthermore, the study concluded that victims who detected crimes by monitoring accounts online experienced financial losses that were one-eighth of those who relied on paper statements ($551 opposed to $4,543 for paper statements).
The most frequently reported source of information used to commit fraud was lost or stolen wallets or checkbooks.
Copyright © 2005 Bankers' Hotline. Originally appeared in Bankers' Hotline, Vol. 15, No. 2, 4/05
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