Progress on ID theft, but the battle goes on
Published 9:00 pm Sunday, January 30, 2005
The decision of whether to do your banking online may not just be one of convenience anymore. A new study suggests that it does a better job of keeping people from becoming greater victims of identity theft.
But don’t toss your checks in exchange for a few clicks of a mouse quite yet. The study has its critics. One thing everyone can agree on, though: Individuals are still their own best defense against identity theft, or at least spotting it early. And a bill in the Legislature, along with more news of identity theft crimes in Snohomish County, keeps the matter fresh and should encourage us to remain alert.
The study, released last week, doesn’t promise online banking customers won’t be targeted by the crime at all, just that they’re more likely to catch on to it faster – before the thief can spend more of their money. The difference in financial damages? About $500 for the online victims and $4,500 for the paper records victim, according to the study.
Take all this with a grain of salt, of course. The study was sponsored by CheckFree Services Corp., Visa USA and Wells Fargo Bank. Critics faulted the survey’s questions and sampling. None of this means online banking isn’t good. Many people swear by it. It’s just more information for consumers to absorb as they decide what’s best for them.
Banking is not the only way identity thieves can get ahold of our most personal information and ruin our financial lives. Good, old-fashioned stealing from mailboxes is still the way some ID thieves operate. And last week a Herald article said police are looking for more victims of a brother-sister identity-theft team. The sister, who worked at a credit card billing company with customers such as Stevens Hospital, allegedly took credit card numbers and gave them to her brother, who bought goodies on the Internet.
The issue is hot in Olympia right now after Sen. Darlene Fairley’s credit card information was stolen and used to buy porn on the Internet – French porn at that. Sen. Jean Berkey of Everett hopes to pass a bill preventing the release of credit reports without the owner’s permission.
The good news in this whole mess is that fewer people were victims of identity theft last year. The numbers were down from 10.1 million in 2003 to 9.3 million in 2004. Despite the drop, this crime isn’t going away, authorities warn. And neither should our vigilance.
