Identity Theft: How Information Technology Has Made It Easier to Do
Identity Theft: How Information Technology Has Made It Easier To Do
IFSM201
Identity theft is not a new problem; it has actually been around for many years but with technology evolving by the minute it has made identity theft easier than ever before to do and almost get away with, leaving little to no traces. In the past the way to commit identity theft was to kill a person and assume their identity, this was way before photo ids were customary, during those times id theft wasn’t that prevalent. During the 50’s and 60’s with the invention of credit cards and Social Security Cards identity theft began to increase slightly, since most people carried their social security cards or passports in their wallets making it easy for thieves to steal and assume their identity; even though a thief may have had your personal information it still wasn’t easy for them to get credit without applying for it in person with photo identification or without the manager of the bank that was extending the credit vouching for you personally (History of Identity Theft) Obtaining credit now a days is a lot easier as long as you have the required information, even if that information is not yours, you no longer need a bank manager to vouch for you; this gives thieves more opportunities to get your information and make it their own. With the invention of the Internet and having just about every transaction we do transmitted electronically, identity thieves have the ability to gain access to a great deal of personal information. The Internet makes this crime easy to commit because thieves no longer have to dumpster dive or steal mail to get pertinent personal information, all a thief needs to do is access a copy of someone’s credit report and all the information is there; SSN, account numbers, date of birth, addresses for the past 10 years everything a thief would need in order to make your identity their identity. It’s not that identity theft isn’t still done the
IFSM201
Identity theft is not a new problem; it has actually been around for many years but with technology evolving by the minute it has made identity theft easier than ever before to do and almost get away with, leaving little to no traces. In the past the way to commit identity theft was to kill a person and assume their identity, this was way before photo ids were customary, during those times id theft wasn’t that prevalent. During the 50’s and 60’s with the invention of credit cards and Social Security Cards identity theft began to increase slightly, since most people carried their social security cards or passports in their wallets making it easy for thieves to steal and assume their identity; even though a thief may have had your personal information it still wasn’t easy for them to get credit without applying for it in person with photo identification or without the manager of the bank that was extending the credit vouching for you personally (History of Identity Theft) Obtaining credit now a days is a lot easier as long as you have the required information, even if that information is not yours, you no longer need a bank manager to vouch for you; this gives thieves more opportunities to get your information and make it their own. With the invention of the Internet and having just about every transaction we do transmitted electronically, identity thieves have the ability to gain access to a great deal of personal information. The Internet makes this crime easy to commit because thieves no longer have to dumpster dive or steal mail to get pertinent personal information, all a thief needs to do is access a copy of someone’s credit report and all the information is there; SSN, account numbers, date of birth, addresses for the past 10 years everything a thief would need in order to make your identity their identity. It’s not that identity theft isn’t still done the
References: FDICchannel. (2011, June 22). Don 't Be an On-line Victim: How to Guard Against Internet Thieves and Electronic Scams. Retrieved October 6, 2011, from FDIC Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation: http://www.fdic.gov/consumers/consumer/guard/index.html History of Identity Theft. (n.d.). Retrieved October 2011, from Identity Theft & Credit Fraud: http://www.identitytheftcreditfraud.com Lieber, R. (2011, May 6). Identity Theft. Retrieved October 6, 2011, from The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/07/your-money/identity-theft/07money.html?_r=2&ref=identityfraud Schneier, B. (2009, January 13). The Wall Street Journal. Technology. Retrieved October 6, 2011, from The Wall Street Journal: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123125633551557469.html Sullivan, B. (2002, November 25). Huge Identity Theft Ring Busted. Retrieved October 7, 2011, from Tech and Gadgets on msnbc.com: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3078518/ns/technology_and_science-tech_and_gadgets/t/huge-identity-theft-ring-busted/