Identity Theft

WKYT 27 NEWSFIRST & WYMT Mountain News - DA a victim of identity theft: "Houston's district attorney had to close his bank account after someone obtained his account number and began writing checks."

Even Lawyers need protection!

WebWire - View My Press Release: "Seniors often fall prey to scam artists and identity theft, but a growing number are now targets of relatives who misuse their identity for personal gain. The upcoming Identity Theft Seminar is designed to help seniors and others learn how not to be burned."

KRT Wire | 06/18/2004 | Identity theft more prevalent in NFL than other pro sports: "People have impersonated athletes for years but Ahlerich has spotted a recent trend. Perpetrators are no longer just trying to impress bar patrons, as has most often been the case in the past. They are targeting players for the sole purpose of committing fraud, and their schemes are becoming increasingly sophisticated."

EVERYONE is at risk, but high-profile (especially wealthy) personalities are even more at risk.

Identity Theft Affects Internet Marketers and Business Owners Too! Internet on Earthtimes.org: "If gone unchecked, everything from bogus purchases to charge-backs and other penalties and costs will eventually affect your reputation, profits and even the way you do business as new online and offline laws are passed to fight this crime."

This article also provides some good items on how to avoid ID Theft.

ThisisLondon: "one third of all PCs connected to the internet are infected with hacking software"

This is a disturbing statistic to say the least!

The article goes on to say that the hacking "software is often used to steal online banking passwords and credit card details".

Ouch!

The Salt Lake Tribune -- New wrinkle in ID theft: "The Federal Trade Commission estimates that one in eight adults -- or 175,000 people in Utah -- have had their identities stolen over the past five years. "

This "new wrinkle" is that ID thieves use their own name, with just someone else's social security number.

Agencies rarely check to see whether names and SSN match.