How does Identity Theft occur?
Identity thieves can access personal information in many ways, even from trusted sources you assumed were secure. Over 247 million identities have been compromised by thieves hacking into business or government websites. To make matters worse, those numbers continue to rise.
When thieves steal your identity, they have a multitude of weapons to use against your personal, family, financial, medical, investment and employment well being. According to the Federal Trade Commission (www.ftc.gov) Identity Theft (also know as "Identity Fraud") was the number one complaint to the FTC for the last nine years. In fact, Identity Theft is so enormous that it makes up over 25% of the complaints logged with the FTC annually. The scary part? The Identity Theft industry is not going away any time soon.....and the industry is growing. Most people falsely believe that "Credit Related Fraud" is the only form of Identity Theft, and that credit monitoring somehow protects you from having your identity stolen. While the FTC reports that Credit Related Fraud is the most common form of Identity Theft (20% of all Identity Theft) there are also numerous other forms of Identity Theft:
Employment Identity Fraud: With a stolen identity at their disposal, thieves can "get a job" using your identity. This employment history could be a detriment to your future employment wants and needs. Additionally, what if the thief evades taxes and does not pay the IRS? The thief can simply walk away from the situation and leave you owing the IRS taxes on money you never earned for a job you never had.
Medical and Insurance Identity Fraud: This is a very scary scenario. The thief will literally have medical procedures performed with your identity, potentially compromising your medical records, history, eligibility's and coverages. If this type of theft occurs, it's possible that you would make a legitimate health insurance claim and your health plan would state you have reached your benefit limits. As well, you may be labeled with a medical condition you do not have which could cause you to lose benefits on your existing plan or be denied new insurance, or treatments, all together. What if the theft is not medical related, yet simply insurance related? This theft occurs when the thief actually opens an insurance policy with your identity, potentially submitting false information, not making premium payments or making false and/or illegal claims. Identity Recovery of either of these scenarios is incredibly complex, time consuming and exhausting.
Criminal Behavior Identity Fraud: Yes, as troubling as it sounds....someone else committing crimes in your name! Anything from a traffic ticket to a DUI to a major felony. 1,000's of these scenarios take place to law abiding Americans each year. We have had many customers with bench warrants in their name for crimes they did notcommit! The thief commits a crime and you are hundreds of miles away. Correcting police reports can be an extremely long and trying effort with slow results. Especially if you are detained in jail for these crimes you did not commit. Even if the thief only gets a speeding ticket in your name, this can still greatly effect you and your family's lives.
Utility and Residence Identity Fraud: What if a person steals your identity, rents an apartment and opens a gas/electric account, a telephone account, a cell phone account, a cable account, and an internet account in your name? Of course they are not going to pay for these services. They will simply move on and leave you trying to resolve overdue billing issues with debt collection agencies, vigilant landlords and public utility companies. While the money you now owe these companies may not be as enormous as a home mortgage fraud, it is certainly enough to destroy your credit and harm you and your family's lives.
Government Document Identity Fraud: The FTC reports that Government Document/Benefit Fraud makes up 15% of all Identity Theft complaints, which makes it 2nd largest type of Identity Theft. The Government has large amounts of your personal, vital information. This information can be compromised in dozens of ways, in dozens of different offices. Think of how many Government offices have all of your personal information. Restoring your identity, while dealing with the Government, only complicates an already expensive and agonizing process.
Credit/Bank/Loan Identity Fraud: The most common type of Identity Theft. According the FTC these frauds combined add up to 33% of all annual complaints. Credit cards, mortgages, car loans, personal item loans, credit lines, personal notes and the list goes on. The recovery can be for numerous "Identity Theft incidents", or numerous "transactions" or "loans". Thieves can take out multiple loans simultaneously and leave you with multiple creditors enforcing collection laws upon you and your family, ruining many aspects of your life.
Other methods of Identity Theft include:
- Phishing Scams: Emails posing as financial institutions to update your account.
- “Old Fashioned Way": Theft of purses and wallets.
- Mail Boxes: Theft of bank statements and invoices.
- Dumpster Diving: Rummaging through trash.
- In-Store Scams: Skim private data from secret credit card readers.
- Google: Use personal information through web searches
- Online Social Networks: Browse MYSPACE and FACEBOOK for exposed data telemarketing scams, call consumers posing as bank fraud investigator.
- Workplace Theft: Insiders steal data from their employer.
- Friends & Family: Victims often know the identity theft.
Don't become a statistic. Let ID Tection provide you with the peace of mind of knowing your identity is protected and backed by 100% Identity Recovery Guarantee.
Are All Identity Theft Protection Services Equal? NO!
- Most companies that offer assistance to victims of identity theft do not address the inevitable, The Recovery Process.
- It is important to understand the difference in terms and coverage when it comes to identity theft services. Some information for you to consider:
When someone finds out they are a victim; anger, fear, anxiety, humiliation and depression are common feelings. The last thing you need is to be pointed to a web site. ID Tection treats their subscribers with compassion and understanding. We know exactly what to do and what needs to be done first. We are with you from beginning to end to ensure The Recovery Process.
- While “Credit Monitoring” services can be helpful in recognizing you’re a victim, these services will not correct the problem once it’s incurred. A common false belief is that credit monitoring somehow protects your identity from being stolen. Monitoring does not prevent or recover you from Identity Theft!
- Identity Theft Insurance is highly touted, but there is much documentation supporting the fact that this type of insurance only covers a few of the expenses incurred during the recovery process. This insurance does nothing for your losses due to the Identity Theft itself. Identity Theft Insurance does not recover your identity.
- Most companies claim to do recovery, but on closer review, one will find that they point their finger in the direction of the FTC, or tell you where to get forms. The victim then finds themselves responsible for form completion, seeking answers through phone calls and performing the complex restoration and recovery process on their own.
What Makes ID Tection Unique and How can ID Tection help me?
As you have now learned, after much research, we discovered that most companies which offer assistance to victims of Identity Theft did not address the inevitable, The Recovery Process.
This is why when we started to develop the ID Tection services we made the commitment to develop the most thorough, efficient, cost effective and easy to use service available. Our partners took over a year to develop our proprietary RUSH Identity Recovery software system. RUSH Identity Recovery handles the following menial tasks:
ID Tection Software Provides:
A custom interface for the ID Tection Recovery Specialist(s) to input key information while interviewing the victim.
Personalization and organization of identity theft forms and documents into your customized “ID Recovery Documentation Kit”. Our software will compile this from its comprehensive database of hundreds of forms/letters with more than 5,500 rules and regulations.
Management for all immediate electronic notifications, as well as all follow-up hard copy, return receipt notifications.
Documentation of the entire recovery process in an easy to follow time stamped journal format.
100% Guaranteed Identity Theft Recovery back to pre-theft status..."No matter the cause or expense".
