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Avoid Becoming Another Hopeless Victim of Bank Identity Theft
Ever wonder how identity theft occurs? It is actually quite fascinating,
if it is not a very malicious and dangerous crime.
Identity theft occurs once a thief assumes another person’s identity
by using confidential information supposed to be known exclusively by that
person. The thief will commit fraud using the person's name and important
confidential information without the victim ever knowing about such transactions.
When the person or victim finally finds out about the crime committed, the
thief is long gone in excruciating anonymity. They leave behind a ruined
reputation, and a paper trail of ruined credit, debts and collectors.
Sometime the implications of identity theft usually cause the wrongful arrest
of the victim. Why so? Because, without the identity theft angle in the case,
it can be assumed that the victim was the one who committed the crimes because
it was done under his/her name.
It is an alarming occurrence and usually, the victims would suffer the
implications of the crime for years to come.
The past several years brought about an alarming wave of identity theft crimes
in different areas dealing with personal information and economic transactions.
One of the hardest hit by identity theft crimes are the banks. Bank identity
theft has been around long before there were credit card, social security,
internet, job banks, airline and medical community identity thefts.
Bank identity theft occurrences vary. Some cases involve a thief continuously
withdrawing huge amounts of cash from a bank account of another person until
there is none left. Another case may involve the identity thief assuming
the name and other personal information of another person then files for
a bank loan.
Armed with personal information of another person, an identity thief can
obtain a driver's license. He/she can open new lines of credit and bank accounts
even buy a car and get a mortgage. Bills and statements from these transactions
are diverted to the thief's temporary address.
They then bilk the victim’s credit line for all it is worth in cash
advances, loans and credit card debt without intent to pay. All these occur
with the thief hidden in a shroud of anonymity.
Bank identity theft and other forms of identity theft is a nightmare for
millions of people who have become victims of such crime. Indeed, the figures
of those victimized have reached into millions already. Sadly, though state
and federal laws and stricter bank transactions have been imposed, the number
of victims continues to rise each year.
When the walls come crashing in, you are left holding the bag and the thief
is long gone. Financial recovery from identity theft can take years.
In United States and Canada, many people have reported unauthorized persons
taking out funds form their bank or financial accounts. There are even worst
cases when the victims report of an identity thief who has totally taken
over their identities. With it, the thief have run up huge debts and committed
crimes all under the name of the victim.
There was a notorious case of identity theft wherein the criminal, a convicted
felon incurred more than $100,000 of credit card debt. Aside from this, the
felon also obtained a federal home loan, bought homes, motorcycles, and handguns
using the victim's name.
With maniacal pride, he called his victim to taunt him. He declared that
he could continue posing as the victim for as long as he wanted. During that
time, identity theft was not yet a federal crime. Then, the thief filed for
bankruptcy still using the victim’s name.
Very bitter was the fact that the criminal only served a brief sentence while
the victim and his wife spent more than four years to restore their reputation
and credit. They also spent more than $15,000 of their own money to win back
their credit. The criminal did not even made restitution for all the danger
he had caused.
The only positive thing that came out of this case and the others similar
to this is when the Congress created a new federal offense against identity
theft in 1998.
You can avoid being a victim of bank identity theft by identifying red flags
that may indicate
Here are several red flags that indicate you may be a victim of identity
theft:
1. There are bills for a credit card account you did not open.
2. There are notice charges, which you did not authorize on your credit card
statement
3. No bills and credit card statements arrive on the days you expect them.
4. Unauthorized transfers or withdrawals on your bank statements show.
5. Notifications from collection agency about accounts you never opened.
6. Calls or notices from businesses about merchandise you did not buy.
7. Debts showing up on your credit reports that you did not file.
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