Identity theft, 2004.

Estimates from the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) revealed that in 2004, 3.6 million households, representing 3 percent of those in the United States, discovered that at least one member had been the victim of identity theft (unauthorized use or attempted use of existing credit cards or other accounts, such as checking, or misuse of personal information to obtain new accounts or loans or to commit other crimes) during the previous 6 months. The households most likely to experience this crime earned $75,000 or more per year, were headed by persons aged 18 to 24, and were located in urban or suburban areas. These findings represent 6-month prevalence estimates and are drawn from interviews conducted from July to December 2004 for the NCVS. Other highlights included the following: credit card theft was the most common type of identity theft; 3 in 10 households experiencing any type of identity theft discovered it by noticing missing money or unfamiliar charges on an account--almost 1 in 4 were contacted by a credit bureau; and estimated losses resulting from identity theft totaled about $3.2 billion.