NCJ Number
235764
Date Published
2010
Length
45 pages
Annotation
This is the Identity Theft Resource Center's (ITRC's) report on the findings of its Aftermath 2009 Survey, which is conducted annually to determine the impact of identity theft on its victims, and the findings are compared with the 2007 and 2008 Aftermath Surveys.
Abstract
The survey shows that problem areas and distress experienced by identity-theft victims in the past have been relieved. This relief has come in the areas of victim time involvement in dealing with the aftermath of the theft, support from friends and family members, satisfaction level in interactions with law enforcement officials, and fewer negative consequences from the theft. Still, the survey revealed a number of adverse experiences that identity-theft victims continue to experience. Check fraud is increasing, along with cases that involve governmental and criminal identity-theft issues. The initial moment of the discovery of the theft and its impact continues to be stressful, indicating that the public and business sections of society have not been sufficiently effective in preventing identity theft and related crimes before there is an adverse impact on potential victims. In addition, the victim's inability to quickly and easily resolve identity issues in cases of identity theft continues to be a frustrating problem for victims, causing both short-term and long-term stress. Data are provided on the prevalence of types of identity theft crimes experienced by victims, offenders' use of victim information, medical identity theft, how victims discovered the crime, costs to victims, victim hours spent in repairing the damage from the theft, inability to clear negative records, the relationship of the imposter to the victim, child identity theft, and the emotional impact of the theft. This survey reflects only the experiences of confirmed identity theft victims who worked with the ITRC in 2009. 28 tables