Read About The Latest Identity Theft Cases

Become aware of what has happened to others so you can avoid being added to this list of identity theft cases.

~One moment Dave D. had $179,000 in his 401(k) retirement account, the next he had nothing. In an instant, 25 years of savings had disappeared. With a few clicks someone raided Dave's retirement account and ordered a full disbursement to a private checking account. Then came the really bad news...while credit cards and online banking accounts are legally protected in the event of fraud, Dave's brokerage account came with no such insurance.

Someone had obtained Dave's user ID and password, logged into his retirement account, changed the linked checking account and requested that all funds be transferred to the new checking account.

The theft wasn't tax efficient. Since Dave isn't yet of retirement age, withdrawing those retirement funds subjected him to penalties for early withdrawal which amounted to just over $35K. The brokerage company held back that amount to pay the taxes so the criminal only netted $143,000 - but not bad for a day's work.

The fact that the new linked checking account had a different name didn't raise any flags high enough to halt the transfer. Further, the high dollar value involved didn't trigger any fraud pattern detection software as large transfers from brokerage accounts are fairly standard.

What can we learn from one of these high dollar amount identity theft cases?

First, guard your user ID and password with your life. Second, monitor your accounts frequently. Third, double check with your brokerage firm to see if they are offering credit-card style guarantees. Because of the increases in the targeting of brokerage accounts due to their usually higher value, it pays to check it out.

~Virus hunters have discovered a new trojan that encrypts files on an infected computer and then demands ransom money for a decryption password. The trojan infects your computer system via an email. It's called 'ransomware' and it was part of a low volume spam campaign designed to fly under the virus detection radar. The ransom note requires you to transfer funds electronically to an E-Gold account (E-Gold accounts can be set up with virtual anonymity) to get the password.

While this is not categorized under identity theft cases per se, it is a reminder to keep your computer protected with the latest antivirus software as well as to avoid clicking on unknown emails and/or attachments.

~Identity thieves trick the unwary into revealing their personal details by telling them they've failed to report for jury duty and that warrants for their arrest are being issued.

Here's how these identity theft cases work...scammers call claiming to work for the local court and claim you've failed to report for jury duty and a warrant has been issued for your arrest. You will often rightly claim you never received the jury duty notification where upon the scammers request confidential information for "verification" purposes. The confidential information is exactly what the scammers need to commit identity theft.

It's easy to understand why this works. The victim is clearly caught off guard and understandably upset at the prospect of a warrant being issued for their arrest. Therefore the victim is less like to be vigilant about protecting their confidential information.

How do you avoid being one of these identity theft cases and what should you do if you get one of these calls?
Never give out your social security number, credit card number or personal confidential information when you receive a phone call requesting such information. Get the caller's number and check it against a known reliable source before calling back to verify. If it's a scam, the caller will most likely immediately hang-up.

Further, it's a good idea to opt out of receiving telemarketer calls by registering your telephone number with the national 'Do Not Call' list. While this won't guarantee never receiving a call from a potential thief, it does lower your risk by having your number less circulated.

~Alfredo T. was headed to his niece's sixth birthday party when he was stopped for speeding. A bewildered Alfredo was arrested and his car impounded. The reason: His driver license was suspended because of a drunken-driving conviction. He insisted he had never gotten a DUI in his life. He spent the night in jail until the next morning when a sympathetic judge promised to alert authorities to his plight. Turns out an illegal alien had bought Alfredo's ID from a illegal document broker in order to secure a job at a nearby meat processing plant. Earlier, that same worker had been arrested and charged with drunk driving then skipped out on paying the fines resulting in a warrant for arrest - all under Alfredo's name.

Alfredo might have been able to prevent getting unjustly arrested and jailed by routinely requesting his driving record from the DMV. It only costs around $5. Alfredo should also consider protecting himself by monitoring his credit report more often as employers are often listed on the report. These two actions may have alerted him to the problem earlier on and helped him avoid being on the list of identity theft cases.

~Ms. Laurels, a mother of two young daughters is investigated and on the verge of losing her food stamps and Medicaid benefits not to mention facing fraud charges because an illegal alien has obtained her driver license number and other identity documents in order to gain employment at meat processing plant.

When state welfare officials performed their routine comparison of welfare assistance recipients and worker records, Ms. Laurels' name came up as being employed, disqualifying her for aid - and subjecting her to fraud charges. With the help of the local police department the matter was eventually resolved, however no charges were brought against the thief who illegally obtained Ms. Laurels' identity because there are too many similar cases overwhelming the police department and they don't have the resources to prosecute each one.

This is one of those identity theft cases that is simply a tough break, but like Alfredo above, Ms. Laurels would do well to monitor her credit report and possibly run a background check on herself from time to time - these reports often include employment data among other things that could have clued in Ms. Laurels to this potentially devastating situation.

~Recipients received an email informing them that a so-called hit man had been hired by their friend to knock them off - but the hit man would forgo the job as long as payment of several thousand dollars was made. The "targets" were asked to respond to the email and provide personal and financial information.

Follow up emails were then sent to the same recipients claiming to be from the FBI stating the hit man had been arrested and then were asked for personal information to assist in the case.

FBI officials warn that these email identity theft cases are phishing attempts designed to steal identities and commit fraud (and not real assassin jobs!).

These types of identity theft cases where phishing is involved is really about using some common sense. Don't open emails or email attachments from unknown sources. Don't fill out or respond to requests for your personal or financial information in an unsolicited email - even if it appears to be from your bank (or the FBI). And other than testifying at a criminal trial, the FBI probably doesn't need your crime-fighting assistance to catch their man.

~Perhaps you recall one of the identity theft cases involving Paris Hilton having her personal information stolen from her Sidekick (her phone/PDA). But did you how it was stolen? The thieves didn't snatch her purse and steal the actual Sidekick, rather they hacked into the service provider's computer servers where her data was actually stored.

Though she may have been the focus of the news story to grab attention for the news channel, the full story is that many people's data were stolen and compromised in that single case as well.

While there aren't many steps she (or the others affected) could have taken to prevent this, it is an example of how much of your personal data's safety is in the hands of others.

When a business compromises your personal data or allows it be vulnerable to hackers and insider thieves, the most you can really do is to routinely monitor your personal information such as your credit report to watch out for suspicious activity that may have resulted from reported or unreported breaches at companies where you do business.

~In one of the most notorious identity theft cases, the criminal, a convicted felon, incurred more than $100,000 of credit card debt, obtained a federal home loan and bought homes, motorcycles and handguns in the victim's name. The criminal then called his victim to taunt him, and then filed bankruptcy in the victim's name.

The victim and his wife spent more than four years and more than $15,000 of their own money to restore their credit and reputation. The criminal served a brief sentence for making a false statement to procure a firearm but made no restitution to his victim for any of the harm he caused.

This case, and others like it, prompted Congress to create a new federal offense: Identity Theft.

Hard to believe that it has been less then 10 years since federal laws were enacted to protect against what are now called identity theft crimes. But relying on laws to keep yourself off the list of identity theft cases is not enough. You must be proactive and initiate some simple steps.

From these stories, it should be obvious that identity theft cases involve more than just stealing your credit card number and racking up charges on your account.

It seems that you are at risk everywhere you turn - and you are. But there is much you can do to lessen the chance you will become another identity theft case. Start with the Resources & Recovery page for a quick list of must do's.

Leave the IDENTITY THEFT CASES page and go to the HOME page