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Identity Theft Survey Report 2003 - Awareness of identity of thief. · Knowledge of the thief’s identity is more likely when the crime involves more serious cases
of Identity Theft. 34% of victims who experienced “New Accounts & Other Frauds” ID Theft
were aware of the thief’s identity. Among those who experienced only the misuse of
existing Credit Card accounts, just 18% knew the identity of the person who misused their
account(s).
· More broadly, in 26% of all cases, the victim knew who had misused their personal
information.
· 35% of the 26% of victims who knew the identity (or, in other words, 9% of all victims) said a
family member or relative was the person responsible for misusing their personal
information. A) In those cases where the ID Theft involved the opening of new accounts or the
committing of other types of fraud, 52% of those who knew the thief’s identity – 18% of victims of this type of ID Theft -- identified a family member or relative as the perpetrator. B) Where the misuse involved only existing Credit Cards, a family member or relative was cited as the person who misused the information by only 26% of victims who said they knew who the person was.
· 23% of the 26% of all victims who knew the identity of the thief (or 6% of all victims) said the
person responsible was someone who worked at a company or financial institution that had
access to the victim’s personal information. A) Where the misuse involved only existing Credit Card accounts, someone at a company or financial institution was cited as the source of the misused information by 33% of those who knew the person’s identity. B) In those cases that involved new accounts or other types of fraud, 13% of those who knew the identity identified the perpetrator as an employee of such companies.
· Of the 26% who knew the identity of the person who took their information, 18% said the
thief was a friend, neighbor, or in-home employee, while 16% said the thief was a complete
stranger, but the victim later became aware of the thief’s identity.
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