Identity Theft

A forensic investigation can involve tracing the whereabouts of a person or their finances (a facet of forensic accounting). Someone who is eluding capture can adopt a new identity or assume the identity of someone else. The mechanisms of identity theft must be familiar to a forensic scientist.

Identity theft is the most popular—and most profitable—form of consumer fraud, and is among the fastest growing crimes in America. It encompasses all types of crime in which someone illegally obtains and fraudulently uses another person's confidential information, most often for financial gain. A person's Social Security number is valuable to an identity thief. Armed with the Social Security number, a criminal can open a bank account or credit card account, apply for a loan, and remove funds from varying financial accounts. In some cases, criminals have assumed the victim's identity altogether, incurring debt in the victim's name and committing crimes that become a part of the victim's criminal record.

The rate of identity theft or identity fraud so escalated in the late 1990s that the Social Security Administration declared it a national crisis.

Advanced computer and telecommunication technologies have armed thieves with new ways to obtain large amounts of personal data from afar. Hackers can spy on e-mail and Internet users, silently stealing passwords or banking information.

Old-fashioned methods also remain effective. "Dumpster diving" thieves sort through garbage for telltale signs of identity such as cleared checks, bank statements, even junk mail, such as "preapproved" credit cards. A "shoulder surfing" criminal spies on someone as they type in a pin number or password at an automatic teller machine (ATM). "Skimming" occurs when a cashier receives a credit card for a purchase, then surreptitiously swipes the card through a portable device that records the card information.

The threat to privacy has prompted a number of new laws governing fraud. In 1998, Congress passed the Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act. The legislation created a new offense of identity theft, making it a separate crime against the person whose identity was stolen. Prior to this legislation, identity theft was considered a crime only against the company the victim defrauded. Under the federal identity theft act, any person "knowingly transferring or using, without lawful authority, a means of identification of another person with the intent to commit, or to aid or abet, any unlawful activity that constitutes a violation of Federal law, or that constitutes a felony under any applicable State or local law" will be charged with a crime. Violators face a maximum term of 15 years in prison, a fine, and criminal forfeiture of any personal property used or intended to be used to commit the offense.

Identity thieves are often charged with other violations, including credit card fraud, computer fraud, and mail fraud. These felonies can carry substantial penalties and up to 30 years imprisonment. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the United States Secret Service, and the United States Postal Inspection Service help prosecute identity theft cases. Many states have also enacted legislation regarding identity theft. Arizona led the way with a specific identity theft statute passed in 1996. As the crime's serious threat became evident, more states followed suit. In 1999, 22 states passed identity theft legislation. According to a U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) report published in 2002, identity theft can be a felony offense in 45 of the 49 states that have laws to address the problem. Two years after the passage of the federal identity theft act, the justice department testified that it had used the statute in 92 cases, according to a GAO report.

The Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act requires the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to "log and acknowledge the receipt of complaints by individuals who certify that they have a reasonable belief" that someone stole their identity. The act enabled the creation of the Identity Theft Data Clearinghouse, a federal database for tracking complaints. Consumers call a toll-free hotline (1-877-ID-THEFT) to enter their complaint, and have the option to do so anonymously. When established in 1999, the FTC logged about 260 calls per week. By 2002, the hotline was receiving more than 3,000 contacts a week.

Identity fraud complaints and related information are shared electronically between the FTC and other law enforcement agencies nationwide via the Consumer Sentinel Network, a secure, encrypted Web site. The network was initially set up in 1997 as a way of tracking telemarketing scams. As of March 2005, more than 1,000 law enforcement agencies in the United States, Canada, and Australia had enrolled in the FTC's Consumer Sentinel Network collaboration. Accessing the Network allows police to analyze identity theft cases and determine if there is a larger pattern of crime. At this time, comprehensive results involving the number of cases prosecuted under the federal identity theft act and state statutes are not available.