2005 Identity Theft Statistics

February 3, 2006 – Well the statistics are in, and 2005 was a banner year for identity theft according to the FTC. There were more than 685,000 complaints of fraud and identity theft, and $680 million stolen. But among the statistics, there are some bright spots.

Of the complaints for fraud and identity theft received by the FTC, 37% were actually for identity theft and 63% were for fraud. Of the fraud cases, the internet was used nearly half of the time; accounting for 46% of all complaints and $335 million in losses. 73% of all scams used the internet as the initial way to contact potential victims. The top fraud scams break down as follows:

· Internet Auctions was the leading complaint category - (12% of overall claims)

· Foreign Money Offers (8%)

· Shop-at-Home/Catalog Sales (8%)

· Prizes/Sweepstakes and Lotteries (7%)

· Internet Services and Computer Complaints (5%)

· Business Opportunities and Work-at-Home Plans (2%)

· Advance-Fee Loans and Credit Protection (2%)

· Telephone Services (2%)

The cities with the highest number of fraud cases on a per-capita basis were:

· Washington, DC area

· Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL

· Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA.

In cases of identity theft, credit card fraud was the most common form; accounting for 26% of all cases. The other favorites of identity theft were:

· Phone or utilities fraud (18%)

· Bank fraud (17%)

· Employment fraud (12%)

· Government documents/benefits fraud (9%)

· Loan fraud (5%).

The cities with the highest number of identity thefts per capita include:

· Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ

· Las Vegas-Paradise, NV

· Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA.

Victims are 40% more likely to be between the ages of 18 and 29, than in any other age range.

The average victim lost $2,412 but there were 49 people who reported losses in excess of $1 million.

As bad as these numbers may seem, there were some bright notes among the data. Identity theft grew by only 3.5% in 2005. This compared favorably to a 15% growth rate in 2004 and a 33% growth rate in 2003. It is apparent that states with strong identity theft and privacy laws were responsible for much of this reduction. 22 states passed data breach notification laws in 2005, requiring companies to notify consumers when their data may have been exposed to identity thieves. And there are now 11 states with Credit Freeze laws, which make identity theft nearly impossible for consumers who actually exercise the right to freeze their credit files.

ACCESS would like to see more states pass credit freeze laws. These laws give consumers far greater control over their financial privacy.

And while we are pleased with the reduction in the growth rate of identity theft, we are also concerned that Congress may set a national standard for data breach notification laws that is significantly weaker than state standards. There are currently no fewer that 19 separate bills dealing with this issue in Congress, and most of these take away the state’s right to regulate companies that operate within their borders.

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