Identity Theft Statistics

Did you know?

According to law enforcement agencies, identity theft has been one of the fastest growing crimes during these past couple years. What’s worse, criminals now take advantage of highly sophisticated technology to lure innocent victims into revealing all of their private and personal information. This article will focus on identity theft statistics, in order to give you a clear picture of this vicious crime and the importance of protecting yourself from it.

The first mention of it was in the 1990’s - identity theft statistics showed that in the period between 2001 and 2002, identity theft increased by 11-20%, while this figure leaped to 80% somewhere between 2002 and 2003. The survey conducted by the Better Business Bureau and Javelin in January 2006, indicated a slight decrease in the number of identity theft attacks between 2003 and 2006 though. In 2003, identity theft statistics highlighted the fact that the number of American adult victims was approximately 10.1 million - this number dropped to 9.3 million in 2005 and further decreased to 8.9 million in 2006.

Identity theft statistics also show there was a 700% increase identity theft crimes in Waco, Texas, between the years 2004 and 2005.And, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, a grand total of 3.6 million households fell victim to this dangerous crime, during a six month period in 2004. Identity theft can deeply affect businesses too. Reports reveal that it can cost a company anywhere between $25,000 - $90,000…..and sometimes, much, much more, when just one single laptop is stolen! Plus, these fees often include credit monitoring, fines, class action litigation and public relations damage control.

It has also been found that stolen laptops are the number one cause of identity theft attacks. The second most common cause being data leaks from various records that have been lost by outsourcing companies or business partners. This component consists of around 29% of all identity theft cases.

Well, the Identity Theft Resource Center states that “Studies on the total cost of identity theft vary. One study said that identity theft cost U.S. Businesses and consumers $56.6 billion in 2005.” Moreover, the same center conducted a survey on phishing, in the spring of 2006, and the results were, to say the least, quite frightening. Out of a total of 309 people that were surveyed, a whopping 165 said they had no idea what phishing was, while only 77 correctly answered.

However, the Javelin report of 2005 showed that offline/traditional methods of identity theft, continued to be more popular than sophisticated online methods. In fact, the identity theft statistics were just 11.6% online, and a massive 68.2% offline. In conclusion…..even though the total percentage of adult victims of identity theft has dramatically reduced since 2003, identity theft remains a notorious and dangerous crime. Keep in mind that identity theft statistics may vary from report to report, but the fact remains unchanged - you *must* keep yourself informed and take measures to protect yourself from this crime, or you could become its next victim. Be safe!