Make Ends Meet: How to protect yourself from identity theft

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - Prices are not the only thing skyrocketing as people face inflation at an over 40-year high. According to the Federal Trade Commission, the number of reported cases of identity theft more than doubled from 2019 to 2020.

The saying goes: it is not a question of “if” you will face identity theft in your life, but “when.” Someone obtains a person’s personal or financial information and uses that information for their economic gain.

Victims will often end up not only feeling vulnerable, but may be left with damage to their credit, their finances, and sometimes, their reputation.

“Identity theft has always been a problem, but in the last couple of years, it has just skyrocketed,” Nick VinZant, a Senior Research Analyst, and Insurance Expert at QuoteWizard said.

After battling pandemic problems, and now record-breaking inflation, it has exploded.

Key Findings for Indiana:

• Identity theft in Indiana has risen 170% since the beginning of the pandemic
• 3,179 identity thefts reported in Indiana already this year
• 47 identity thefts per 100,000, 29th highest rate nationwide

Key Findings for Kentucky:

• 1,517 identity thefts reported in Kentucky already this year
• 34 identity thefts per 100,000, 39th highest rate nationwide
• Bank and government documents are the fastest growing types of identity theft

National Key Findings:

• 280,000 identity thefts reported already this year
• 396% increase in identity theft in some states
• Louisiana, Kansas, and Delaware have seen the highest increases in identity theft
• Bank and government documents are the fastest growing types of identity theft

“It’s really a result of more opportunities for criminals, and criminals coming in and taking advantage of the situation,” VinZant said.

The Federal Trade Commission said scammers took advantage of individual and business COVID-19 relief payments, and the increase in e-commerce exposed more people to fraud, as more personal information was shared online.

“Criminals just had more opportunities to steal people’s identities and they have been doing that over the past three years,” VinZant said.

Some of the most common tactics used to swipe your data and steal your hard-earned cash include:

• Insecure websites
• Phishing, where a fraudulent email or message that appears to be from a reputable source can lure a person into sharing their important, intimate information.
• Hacking, where thieves break into a person’s digital devices and networks to gain access to their information and your funds.
• Shoulder surfing, where someone looks right over a person’s shoulder to grab important info, like an ATM pin, access code or credit card number.
• Skimming, where illegally installed devices automatically download a person’s sensitive information.
• Dumpster diving, where documents a person discards can give thieves exactly what they need.
• Mail theft, where thieves are not only grabbing sensitive information from their home, but some are taking it right out of the blue collection mailboxes.

“These scams that criminals are using are always evolving,” VinZant said.  “There is always something new.”

Here are some ways to be proactive in protecting identity:

• Use two factor authentication
• Password protect devices
• Use a password manager to keep up with unique passwords for each account
• Never give out personal information over the phone, in a text or in an email
• Check credit report regularly
• Shred documents

“Sometimes these can start as a drip and turn into a flood,” VinZant said.

Another tip is to freeze credit. People are allowed to freeze and unfreeze their credit reports at no cost when they need to.

Contact Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion for a free fraud alert. If a victim notifies one of the credit unions, they will alert the other two. A fraud alert can be active for up to seven years.

QuoteWizard’s report on the troubling rise in identity theft, along with how people can protect themselves is available by clicking or tapping here.

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