| Reports show identity theft is a growing business, costing billions
More than 8 million Americans were victims of identity theft in 2005, as hundreds of data breaches cost businesses and consumers untold billions. Those are the findings of two reports that estimate the consequences and costs of all the electronic data losses that have put at least 215 million sensitive records into the wrong hands and spawned a new criminal epidemic of identity theft since counting began in 2005. The estimate of 8.3 million identify thefts came in a report the Federal Trade Commission issued Monday. Separately, private sector data security expert Larry Ponemon today will release the third in a series of surveys that looked closely at 35 of the nearly 310 security breaches that have been reported by U.S. companies and government agencies so far in 2007.
American National Standards Institute (ANSI)
ANSI is a private non-profit organization whose mission is to enhance U.S. global competitiveness and the American quality of life by promoting, facilitating, and safeguarding the integrity of the voluntary standardization and conformity assessment system. Its membership is comprised of businesses, professional societies and trade associations, standards developers, government agencies, and consumer and labor organizations. The Institute currently administers five standards panels in the areas of biofuels, homeland security, nanotechnology, healthcare information technology, and identity theft prevention and identity management. American National Standards Institute (ANSI): CSR News, Events and Reports .
Government bill attacks identity theft
OTTAWA - The federal government took a landmark step Wednesday toward battling the explosion of identity theft by introducing legislation making it illegal to collect personal documents belonging to others in order to commit fraud. "Every day the issue of identity theft affects or threatens more Canadian families and businesses," Justice Minister Rob Nicholson told a news conference Wednesday. "Identity theft is costly to banks, to retailers and consumers alike." Under the new bill, part of the government's toughened fall law-and-order agenda, it will become a crime in Canada to obtain, possess or traffic another person's passport, credit cards, drivers licences or other identity documents for the purpose of committing fraud. The legislation is meant to close a gap in the Criminal Code.
Watchdog warns of phone scam
Consumers are being conned over the phone by fraudsters claiming to be calling from Consumer Direct. The callers pretend they are carrying out a survey on behalf of the Government-funded consumer advice organisation and ask their victims for personal and financial information. However, Consumer Direct said the callers have no connection with it, and their intention may be to use the information for identity theft, to run up bills or commit crimes using stolen details. Consumer Direct said although it does carry out surveys in order to monitor its performance, it will always write first so that the call is expected. The consumer watchdog said it also would never ask people for financial or personal information and warned people that they should never pass on these kind of details to any cold callers either over the phone or via email.
Government says ID theft down but report is disputed
A government survey released this week questions the conventional wisdom that identity theft is a growing problem in the U.S. But don't toss out your shredder just yet. Consumer advocates are not convinced the Federal Trade Commission numbers are accurate, though they do agree on a key point highlighted in a footnote of the agency's report: the difficulty in coming up with a reliable assessment of the problem. An estimated 8.3 million Americans over the age of 18 were victims of identity theft in 2005, according to an analysis of a phone survey released Tuesday by the FTC. That represented a decline of about 16 percent from an estimated 9.9 million victims in 2003, when the agency last conducted its survey. While the FTC's identity theft survey is broad, the agency acknowledged in a footnote that its conclusion is not "statistically significant" because the sample size was too small.
WA attorney general McKenna launches re-election bid
OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) -- Republican Attorney General Rob McKenna launched his 2008 re-election campaign on Wednesday, touting his first-term work fighting identity theft and methamphetamine abuse. McKenna, a former King County councilman, was first elected attorney general in 2004. He is one of three Republicans to hold statewide elected office, along with Secretary of State Sam Reed and Public Lands Commissioner Doug Sutherland. In an interview, McKenna said his travels around the state working on consumer protection, crime and open government issues have helped him connect with Washingtonians. "I just need to do my job every day, and that's the most important thing I can do to persuade the voters to give me another four years," he said. McKenna filed paperwork to seek a second term shortly after winning the attorney general's seat in 2004.
Tories take aim at identity thieves
The Conservative government will introduce legislation this fall aimed at catching identity thieves before they attack the bank accounts of Canadians. Justice Minister Rob Nicholson said new amendments to the Criminal Code will punish identity theft, regardless of whether the stolen information is ever used for identity fraud. In an interview with The Globe and Mail, Mr. Nicholson said stolen identity crimes cost Canadian individuals and businesses $2-billion a year. "I think it's a growing problem and we've got to get on it now because the technology people use to obtain information will only get better," he said. "We've got to get something on the books." The minister said the bill will close a gap in the law. Current offences are focused solely on the misuse of stolen identities through fraud, impersonation or forgery.
Government report says ID theft down
A government survey released this week questions the conventional wisdom that identity theft is a growing problem in the U.S. But don't toss out your shredder just yet. Consumer advocates are not convinced the Federal Trade Commission numbers are accurate, though they do agree on a key point highlighted in a footnote of the agency's report: the difficulty in coming up with a reliable assessment of the problem. An estimated 8.3 million Americans over the age of 18 were victims of identity theft in 2005, according to an analysis of a phone survey released Tuesday by the FTC. That represented a decline of about 16 percent from an estimated 9.9 million victims in 2003, when the agency last conducted its survey. While the FTC's identity theft survey is broad, the agency acknowledged in a footnote that its conclusion is not "statistically significant" because the sample size was too small.
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