Identity theft has become so common that hearing about the latest scams shouldn’t come as a shock. As identity theft becomes more commonplace, identity thieves are becoming more sophisticated and creative as targeted consumers and entities become more aware and defend against attacks.
When people think of identity theft, most people think of identity theft during a data breach. But unfortunately, there are many different types of identity theft that can affect you or your loved ones.
What types of identity theft are there?
While most identity theft takes place digitally, there are several types of identity theft that are used in real life and can have real, non-monetary impacts. Below is a breakdown of how stolen information is used online or offline.
criminal identity theft scam
Identity theft has become so common that hearing about the latest scams shouldn’t come as a shock. (Cyber Guy.com)
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All identity theft is a crime, but criminal identity theft is especially true when criminals use stolen information to deal with law enforcement. These criminals use information stolen online or in the mail to give you information when you are pulled over by law enforcement or when dealing with the legal system. Information may even be used to plead guilty to certain crimes. In this way, they cannot appear in court or pay fines, leaving records, fines, or warrants.
Your finances aren’t necessarily immediately affected, so most victims of this type of theft don’t know it until they perform what appears to be a simple background check for a job or purchase. Hmm. Worse, you might be surprised to be served court documents, or even get arrested for being pulled over by a cop for a minor traffic violation.
business impersonation scam
Identity theft has become so common that hearing about the latest scams shouldn’t come as a shock. (Cyber Guy.com)
While it seems unlikely in this age when people seem very conscious of identity theft crimes, criminals still use people, voicemail systems, or bots to steal money from businesses or organizations (banks or hospitals). successfully placed a call to an individual pretending to be a representative of Get personal information or money.
email identity theft scam
As identity theft becomes more commonplace, identity thieves are becoming more sophisticated and creative as targeted consumers and entities become more aware and defend against attacks. (Cyber Guy.com)
While various types of email identity theft tactics have been featured, “unsubscribe” email scams target Americans & Microsoft phishing scams & don’t click that email — Email The most common form of identity theft is to steal personal information and money from friends, family, co-workers, etc. in your life.
Most recently, a hacker obtained my friend’s email account and replied to an email I sent. Her name remained the same, but her email belonged to the hacker. Since it was a reply to an old email, it could easily be mistaken for one from her friend. I noticed a grammatical error and checked the email her address (right click) behind the sender’s name. It turned out to be from an email address I had never heard of.
Other tactics include emails from someone pretending to be a government agency, Like a postal service that requires payment in exchange for a package they hold on your behalf.
Stay vigilant: “Sextortion scams are up 8x, according to FTC
formjacking scam
As identity theft becomes more commonplace, identity thieves are becoming more sophisticated and creative as targeted consumers and entities become more aware and defend against attacks. (Cyber Guy.com)
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Formjacking is when cybercriminals hack websites and embed malicious Javascript code to hijack the functionality of forms on the site to collect user information. This type of theft is usually aimed at stealing payment information or personal information commonly used during checkout.
social media scam
Identity theft has become so common that hearing about the latest scams shouldn’t come as a shock. (Cyber Guy.com)
Frighteningly, if you are digitally connected (usually 5 or more social media platforms), your risk of fraud increases by 30%. In general, your information is readily available, not just to those you are connected with. Cybercriminals can piece together information from different platforms to create a similar profile and impersonate you to get more information from you or anyone related to you.
Buy now pay later scam
Online installment options allow consumers to get products immediately with a plan to pay later. Criminals can access your account to make unauthorized purchases or use your information to create new accounts.
medical identity theft scam
Identity theft has become so common that hearing about the latest scams shouldn’t come as a shock. (Cyber Guy.com)
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While many consider the direct financial impact when discussing identity theft, there is another type of identity theft that is becoming increasingly common.
AARP’s FTC report reported a surge in cases of: Theft of medical ID It has grown from 6,800 in 2017 to 43,000 in 2021. Many medical establishments may only require your date of birth to proceed with an appointment, making it easy to initiate fraud.
The financial impact alone can be bad as medical debt collection can impact your credit or keep you in debt for services you don’t provide. A criminal’s health history can become part of the record through bogus services, prescription purchases, or criminal-inflicted medical problems. This may affect future medical and insurance benefits.
Synthetic identity theft scam
As identity theft becomes more commonplace, identity thieves are becoming more sophisticated and creative as targeted consumers and entities become more aware and defend against attacks. (Cyber Guy.com)
Criminals may use your personal information or some of your personal information to open new credit cards or take out loans. For example, they may use your social security number and date of birth as a pseudonym.
child impersonation scam
When fooling adults isn’t enough, criminals are seeing a new downturn by stealing children’s identities to make fraudulent purchases and account openings. Because children don’t file taxes or open accounts, and often don’t actively monitor their information, most cheating goes unnoticed for years.
Was fooled! what next?
Below are the next steps to take if you or your loved one is found to be the victim of impersonation.
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- When You Can Take Back Control of Your Account,change password Notify your account provider
- Look through bank statements and checking account transactions See where the outlier activity started
- Use anti-fraud services: Identity theft companies can monitor personal information such as social security numbers (SSNs), phone numbers, and email addresses to alert you if it is being sold on the dark web or used to open accounts. can. You can also freeze bank and credit card accounts to prevent further fraudulent use by criminals. The best parts of using an identity theft protection service like my number 1 pick include identity theft insurance that covers losses and legal fees, and white glove fraud with a US-based case manager to help you recover your losses. Includes resolution team. For more information, visit cyberguy.com/identitytheft.
Protect yourself from identity theft (Cyber Guy.com)
- report a violation
to official government agencies such as the Federal Trade Commission - Get Professional Advice from a Lawyer Before consulting law enforcement, especially if you are dealing with identity theft, are victims of criminal identity theft and cannot secure employment or housing
- Before consulting law enforcement, especially if you are dealing with criminal identity theft
- If you become a victim of an identity theft crime and are unable to secure employment or housing
- Alert all three major credit bureaus May show fraud warnings on your credit report
- Run your own background checksOr, if you discover that your information has been used by criminals, ask for a copy.
If you are a victim of identity theft, the most important thing is to take immediate action to mitigate the damage and prevent further damage.
Have you ever been a victim of identity theft? Let us know what happened and how you dealt with it. we would like to hear from you
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