Identity theft fastest growing white collar crime in nation. (On First Reading).Identity theft is still considered the fastest growing white collar crime white collar crime n. a generic term for crimes involving commercial fraud, cheating consumers, swindles, insider trading on the stock market, embezzlement and other forms of dishonest business schemes. in the nation. The Federal Trade Commission received 162,000 reports of ID theft last year, almost twice as many as the year before. Thieves hack into corporate databases and download credit card numbers and other personal information. Once the personal information is stolen, they can open a new credit card account using a victim's name, birth date and Social Security number (SSN SSN abbr. Social Security Number ). Or they may open bank accounts in someone else's name and write bad checks. As states try to provide some recourse for injured parties Noun 1. injured party - someone injured or killed in an accident casualty victim - an unfortunate person who suffers from some adverse circumstance , consumers are also asking for more protection for their personal information. There is widespread use of Social Security numbers in government and business databases, which hackers access illegally. New California laws not only restrict SSN use, but require credit bureaus to develop other personal identification numbering systems. Although most states have identity theft laws in place, new statutes were enacted in at least 13 states last year to enhance existing legislation. Arizona doesn't need proof of economic loss to label a crime identity theft. California honed its law to give counties jurisdiction for criminal action. The Georgia code The official Georgia Code consists of statutes enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Georgia. Like other U.S. state codes, its interpretation is subject to the United States Constitution, the United States Code, the Code of Federal Regulations, and the state's was amended to focus on identity fraud and collection of personal financial information. Hawaii added criminal penalties, and New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of set new penalties for misappropriation misappropriation n. the intentional, illegal use of the property or funds of another person for one's own use or other unauthorized purpose, particularly by a public official, a trustee of a trust, an executor or administrator of a dead person's estate, or by any of another's identity. Maryland expanded the crime of fraud involving personal information to include aiding another in that crime. "Identity fraud" was written into Ohio law and given stronger penalties. Penalties for use of a financial scanning device See scanner. and re-encoder were added in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho and Nebraska. Victim innocence was provided in California and Colorado law, as well as restitution in Idaho and New Jersey. A person convicted of identity theft in Illinois and Pennsylvania is liable in a civil action. California requires a consumer credit reporting agency to provide a statement describing the statutory rights of identity theft victims and provide a free monthly copy, for up to 12 months, of a consumer's file. For more information or to get help, contact the Federal Trade Commission at www.consumer.gov/idtheft |
|
||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion