NCJ Number
226849
Journal
Law Enforcement Technology Volume: 36 Issue: 4 Dated: April 2009 Pages: 28,30,33
Date Published
April 2009
Length
5 pages
Annotation
This article briefly examines the growing prevalence in identity theft and how law enforcement can protect the community through improved understanding of identity theft and steps the community or individual can undertake to better protect themselves.
Abstract
According to the 2009 Identity Fraud Survey Report, in 2008, 9.9 million Americans were identity theft victims, an increase of 22 percent over 2007. Unfortunately, with identity theft, victimization does not seem to end. Investigators see many victims retargeted. To combat identity theft, it is important for law enforcement to recognize it and to assist the community in identifying it. This article describes a summit hosted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Law Enforcement Executive Development Association (FBI-LEEDA) and LifeLock (an identity theft protection company) to help educate law enforcement across the country both as consumers and officers in the recognition of identity theft. In addition, the Federal Trade Commission suggests steps that can be taken to make identity theft more difficult, from protecting social security numbers to storing information in secure locations. The key is awareness. Being proactive and educating both law enforcement and the public is essential in the protection against identity theft.