Identity Fraud Affects 10million Americans

A new report published by Javelin Strategy & Research, confirms that identity fraud in America has increased by 22%.The research now puts the number of Americans who have fallen victim to identity fraud at 9.9 million, with a cost of $48 billion in 2008.

Figures released by CIFAS earlier this year, put the UK rise in fraud at 16%, showing that American shoppers may be faring worse than their UK counterparts.

The report also highlights some other interesting fraud trends:

Improved Fraud Detection
Interestingly, fraud incidents in the United States have now increased back to levels last seen in 2004, when fraud peaked at $60 billion. So, whilst incidents remain high, amounts stolen using identity fraud have lowered. The cost to consumer per identity fraud has decreased from $718 to $496 per incident; said to be a result of better fraud detection, lower fraud amounts and better consumer education.

Fraudsters are Fast
71% of fraud incidents occurred within a week of identity data being lost or stolen. Compared to a figure of 33% in 2005, this is a dramatic jump in the speed of identity thefts. This increase is said to be an indicator of increasingly sophisticated attacks by fraudsters, as well as an increasing number of instances where personal data has been left exposed.

Male vs Female, UK vs US
Interestingly, the Javelin report found that women are more likely to be victims of identity fraud than men, and that 14% of female victims did not experience fraud until one year after their data was compromised, compared to a 2% figure for men. The study adds that this is more likely as men are more likely to utilize phone and internet banking technology, and therefore detect fraud much quicker. In the UK however, figures released by APACs show that women are more likely to use new financial technology such as internet banking and SMS alerts.

How fraudsters steal an identity
Some interesting facts:

• 10% of id fraud victims know the fraudster
• One in four is a victim of fraud because of PIN compromise
• 3% of identity fraud instances result from stolen mail items such as bills and statements
   

The complete Javelin Strategy Identity Fraud 20089 report is available at: http://www.idsafety.net/