What form of identity theft was most common in 2017?

Credit card fraud
Credit card fraud was the most common form of identity theft (133,015 reports), followed by employment or tax-related fraud (82,051 reports), phone or utilities fraud (55,045 reports), and bank fraud (50,517 reports) in 2017, according to the FTC.

What form of identity theft was most common in 2018?

Most common types of identity theft

• Employment- or tax-related fraud (34%)
• Credit card fraud (33%)
• Phone or utilities fraud (13%)
• Bank fraud (12%)
• Loan or lease fraud (7%)
• Government documents or benefits fraud (7%)

  Which country commits the most identity theft?

  Almost 64 percent of the total stolen data records occurred in the United States, whose large population, concentration of major companies, and rate of technological adoption make it the most massive “hotspot” on this map. Countries like China and India are also major centers of data breaches.

  Who is most at risk for identity theft?

  Three main age groups stand out among victims of identity theft: the elderly, college students and children. The Bureau of Justice reports the number of elderly victims grew by 25 percent between 2012 and 2014. In children, identity theft victims as young as 5 months old have been reported.

  How often is identity theft reported to the FTC?

  Last year, the FTC processed 9,439 email or social media identity theft reports, a 23% increase from 2017. According to the FTC, identity theft reports involving social networking are increasing. People who have previously been affected by identity theft are at a greater risk for future identity theft and fraud.

  What was the percentage of identity theft in 2016?

  31.7% of breach victims in 2016 later experienced identity fraud, compared to just 2.8% of individuals not notified of a data breach in 2016, according to Javelin. The Federal Trade Commission’s Consumer Sentinel Network Report stated that identity theft accounted for 13.87% of all consumer complaints in 2017.

  How is identity theft used in the real world?

  What it is: A borrower or a lessee uses someone else’s information to obtain the loan or lease. What it is: The criminal uses stolen personal information to obtain government benefits. Editor’s note: Percentages add up to more than 100 because some complaints involved more than one type of identity theft.

  Is there a federal law against identity theft?

  Schemes to commit identity theft or fraud may also involve violations of other statutes such as identification fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1028), credit card fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1029), computer fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1030), mail fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1341), wire fraud (18 U.S.C.

  What was the aftermath of identity theft 2017?

  Aftermath 2017 report is created from voluntary responses by victims who contacted the ITRC for assistance during 2016. The primary focus of many identity theft surveys is to better understand the financial or criminal aspects of identity theft, which overshadow the long-term toll on victims’ sense of trust.

  What was the number of identity theft breaches in 2017?

  The Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC) recently announced its 2017 Data Breach report and it’s no surprise that breaches are up. Last year there were 1,579 data breaches exposing nearly 179 million records. That represents a 44% increase in the number of breaches and a 389% increase in records exposed.

  Are there any real cases of identity theft?

  Unfortunately, identity theft stories like this one aren’t all that uncommon. Nakeisha Hall spent most of her career with the IRS working in Taxpayer Advocate Services, helping individuals who had been victims of tax fraud.

  How often is identity theft targeted at children?

  Experian is alerted to 25,000-30,000 fraud cases reported each year and approximately 17% were targeted at children. Child identity fraud or theft will affect 25% of kids before turning 18. The FTC also reported that 35% of fraud complaints and 18.9% of ID theft complaints impacted seniors (Americans who are 60 years or older) in 2017.