Identity Theft

Speaking about identity theft, Sandra Johnson a criminal law professor at the University of Pittsburg and a former federal prosecutor, said “It’s very difficult to protect against, by the time you find out it’s a problem, you’ve been victimized and probably not just once”. More than 27 million Americans have been victims of identity theft between 1998 and 2003, according to a FTC report. And this form of fraud is growing. In 2003, nearly 400,000 Americans were victims of identity theft, where a person gives authorities someone else’s name at the time of the stealers arrest. And these are just the numbers that are reported.

Older people are especially vulnerable to con people and other types of thieves, because many of you were brought up in a different era and believe that sincere talking people are honest. Most are. A lot are not. That is why you are paying for the support of over 2,000,000,000 mostly dishonest people incarcerated in the U.S. as you read this warning.

A few tips – never let your credit card numbers be seen by someone standing in line looking over your shoulder.

Never give personal information such as your credit or Social Security number to anyone over the telephone unless you are completely confident, for example, that it is your bank, your investment manager and it is really someone you can check on to be sure they are who they claim to represent.

When asked to give your personal identification numbers over the phone and you have any doubts of the validity of the request, ask the caller for a number where you can call them back. Then you can look them up in the phone book to verify the number. If the number cannot be confirmed, ask for advice before proceeding. You can also ask where they are located and how they are listed in the local phone book. If an out of town address if given, seek advice. If the address is local but you are not familiar with the party, you should seek further advice.

If in doubt at all, call a relative, a friend, or your personal banker or accountant. You do not want to become another victim of identity theft. But if you suspect or are an identity theft victim, report it at once to the proper authorities.


Merle Widmer
Vice-Chairman, Peoria County Board