Identity Theft - By The Numbers.

I found this on-line this weekend. This article has nothing to do with background checks but has a lot of great information about identity theft.

Facts about identity theft:

-- In 2005, about 1.6 million households experienced theft of existing accounts other than a credit card, such as a banking account, and 1.1 million households discovered misuse of personal information, such as a Social Security number.

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Identity Theft

Just found a great informative article about identity theft. Linda Foley is quoted from the Identity Theft Resource Center. I have met Linda several times most recently at the National Association of Professional Background Screeners (NAPBS) Conference. While Linda is not an expert in Pre-employment Screening, she is in expert in identity theft and privacy. Kudos to Linda and all the great work she is doing.

Holiday Forecase: More e-scams

By Richard Burnett | Tribune Newspapers: The Orlando Sentinel November 26, 2007

ORLANDO - Just in time for "Cyber Monday" and the online holiday shopping rush: A new round of bogus e-mail, identity-theft experts say.

Have you won $2 million in a Christmas sweepstakes held by Coca-Cola in the United Kingdom? Can you make big bucks just by cashing checks for an Irish researcher, Chinese exporter or rich oil consultant in Dubai? Is there a problem with your account at Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, eBay or PayPal?

No. But you might think so if you fall for some of the recent e-mail scams infesting the Internet.

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Final Rules Issued for Identity Theft Prevention

The FTC and the federal financial institution regulatory agencies have submitted their final rules and guidelines on how creditors and financial institutions must handle identity theft "red flags" and address discrepancies.

Highlights of the rules include the following measures that must be taken:

1. Identify relevant patterns, practices, and specific forms of activity that are “red flags” signaling possible identity theft and incorporate those red flags into the Program;
2. Detect red flags that have been incorporated into the Program;
3. Respond appropriately to any red flags that are detected to prevent and mitigate identity theft; and
4. Ensure the Program is updated periodically to reflect changes in risks from identity theft.

These guidelines seem like things you would think most creditors and financial institutions would already be doing. Hopefully, these measures can help protect consumers.

Click here to view the entire FTC Release

Identity theft gets the wrong person arrested.

I found this story very interesting and a great tie-in for background checks.

CHARLOTTE, Tenn. - A Dickson County woman wanted by police turned out to be the real victim.

Police arrested Brandi King for allegedly failing to appear in Maury County court on a shoplifting charge.

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