Identity theft occurs when someone uses your personally identifying information like your name, financial information or credit card number without your permission, to commit fraud or other crimes. This is called ID Theft. Identity theft is a criminal act.
ID theft victims are much more likely to get hit with fraudulent charges on their credit cards or debit cards, according to Identity Theft Resource Center.
Once the criminals steals someone’s personal information they use it to obtain various services in your name, including
- opening new credit card accounts in your name
- opening a new phone or wireless account in your name
- opening a bank account in your name and write bad checks
- get a driver’s license or official ID card issued in your name with their picture.
Skilled identity thieves may use a variety of methods to get hold of your information, including:
- Dumpster Diving
- Skimming
- Phishing
- Changing Your Address
- Pretexting
Example of Scam (The Nigerian Scam)
Any email asking for you to help to move money, reship packages, or collect money for a company or person anywhere in the world should be considered a scam. Click Here to view this scam: Examples of Scam-Job Scam that appears to be from Hong Kong