Should I Really Be as Scared of Identity Theft as I Am?

Identity theft or identity fraud is a problem that only seems to become more and more prominent in our nation, so it’s no wonder why so many people are scared of it happening to them. Some people claim that the threat of identity theft is being over exaggerated and that we’ve become paranoid of it. While there may be some people that truly are paranoid about identity theft, there’s no question that it is a truly dangerous problem that can affect anyone at anytime. The threat of identity theft is definitely not something to be ignored, as recent figures show that it occurs to nearly ten million Americans every year. Obviously you should be able to live your life comfortably without constantly worrying about identity theft, but you should always have a healthy fear of it – meaning you have an identity theft protection program or are at least very careful with your personal information.

What Can Happen if My Identity is Stolen?

Of course the main reason we all fear identity theft is because of severely damaging consequences it has on its victims. The effects of identity theft are wide ranging and can potentially cost thousands of dollars. Here are some of the common things that can happen if your identity is stolen:

• If a criminal gets your banking information, they can easily empty all of your bank accounts.
• By opening your mail, someone may find preapproved credit cards or other important documents that they can use to financially benefit by using your name.
• Should your computer ever be hacked, an identity thief may have access to all of the documents on it. They could retrieve your online sign-on information for important websites and use it to make purchases or get personal information.
• Using your social security number and other information, a criminal may be able to take out loans or mortgages in your name.
• If your identity is stolen, someone could literally live their life under your name. There have been many instances where an individual has made false statements and even committed crimes using stolen identities.

Additional Resources:

• Online Shoppers Fear Identity Theft