Government Technology

Half of Identity Theft is Committed by Someone You Know


You May Also Like

August 1, 2006 By

Fifty-three percent of identity theft victims last year reported their identity stolen by a friend, a relative, an employee, or an acquaintance. In an effort to educate consumers on identity theft, the National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC), best known for its icon McGruff the Crime Dog, has added new public service advertising (PSA) radio spots to its identity theft prevention initiative.

Identity theft affects more than 10 million people a year and 3.6 million households. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, "Identity theft and identity fraud are terms used to refer to all types of crime in which someone wrongfully obtains and uses another person's personal data in some way that involves fraud or deception, typically for economic gain."

"Few crimes today have made people more anxious than identity theft," said NCPC President and CEO Alfonso E. Lenhardt. "The good news is that identity theft can often be prevented. Educating people on how to reduce their risk of becoming victims is NCPC's top priority. Many of us do not realize how often our everyday actions can put us at risk."

The initiative launched today is in partnership with the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) and funded by the U.S. Department of Justice. NCPC's identity theft campaign aims to help consumers take practical steps to protect their personal information. Last year, NCPC partnered with the NAB to produce three television PSAs that were released in late June at the NAB's 2005 Service to America Gala.

"NAB is pleased to enlist the continuing support of local radio and television stations in curbing the growing threat of identity theft," said NAB President and CEO David K. Rehr. "Broadcasters are uniquely positioned to help educate Americans on this menace to society, and working with our partners at the National Crime Prevention Council, the NAB will use all of our resources to help mobilize citizens into taking protective actions."





You may use or reference this story with attribution and a link to
http://www.govtech.com/security/Half-of-Identity-Theft-is-Committed.html


| More

Comments


Add Your Comment

You are solely responsible for the content of your comments. We reserve the right to remove comments that are considered profane, vulgar, obscene, factually inaccurate, off-topic, or considered a personal attack.

GovTech Papers and Case Studies View Library


Sponsored Links



Phone RSS

Government Best Practices

» A New Model for Human Resources
» Abandoning the High Cost of Enterprise Content Management



Government Technology
Public CIO
Emergency Management
Digital Communities