Credit Information

Identity Theft : They Got Him


His hard earned money? Gone. Creditors on his back everyday. Police knocking on his door. His family strained to the breaking point. He didn't do anything wrong but my business partner's life got turned upside down a few years back. He became a victim of what is now the fastest growing crime in the world. Identity theft.

According to the Federal Trade Commission, since 1999 over 27 million people in the US alone became victims of this epidemic 10 million more last year. Harris InterActive,a marketing research company, reports that between 2002 and 2003 roughly 19,178 people per day fell victim.

Your identity can be stolen in many ways. For my partner, the thief gained access to his social security number and address then applied for a series of loans in his name. When the bills came due, guess who the creditors and law enforcement held accountable?

He and his family felt the full impact. Identity theft can cripple and even destroy a person's life. Not just the time loss trying to recover your identity but also the out of pocket expense. U.S.Treasury Secretary John Snow calls identity theft "the greatest threat to consumers and far more insidious and harmful to our national welfare than many people realize."

The internet doesn't make it any better with its almost limitless access to information but a great deal of identity theft still comes from the offline world. Wherever it comes from the goal stays the same. Get your personnal information and steal what belongs to you for as long as possible.

In many cases, this can lead to the victim filing for bankruptcy or worse. As reported by the Orlando Sentinel, one man whose identity got stolen recently spent 54 days in jail before authorities realized their mistake.

Yet even when the thief finally gets caught, victims find out all too often the worse part still lies ahead. The recovery of their identity. For my partner, that meant never ending battles with the same credit bureaus that previously gave him good ratings.

They destroyed his credit almost overnight eventhough he did everything they told him to get it restored. The agencies refused to clear his record and instead, started sharing his information with each other. His mortgage rates went thru the roof. He paid more for everything but still got declined. With all of this came the burden and fear of him not knowing if he would ever recover his identity.

Six years later he finally did. He started working with a company that within 90 days restored his credit. His mortgage rate dropped and he went back to paying full price for everything like the rest of us.

And like my partner, all of us risk becoming victims. In San Antonio Texas, television station KENS 5 spoke with a man convicted of identity theft who warned "Don't take for granted what you have because anybody could take it away - I mean at the snap of a finger."

He would know. The ways of stealing an identity have turned this crime from nuisance to worldwide crisis.

Daryl Campbell is a technical and screenplay writer and CEO of Campbell Marketing, L.L.C. His website winthemarket.com, mini-sites, and articles submitted to ezines help the reader to grow and protect their internet marketing business.

Can you afford to hire professionals who will give you 24/7 protection, complete identity restoration and the best legal services? Identity thieves hope you answer no. Upset them by going to http://digbig.com/4cmcg now.


MORE RESOURCES:

Kenexa to Present at the Credit Suisse Annual Technology Conference
MarketWatch - 10 hours ago
a global provider of talent acquisition and retention solutions, today announced that its Chief Financial Officer, Don Volk, is presenting at the Credit ...
AMD to Present at Credit Suisse Annual Technology Conference WELT ONLINE
Salesforce.com Chairman and CEO to Deliver Keynote Presentation at ... MarketWatch
SuccessFactors Chief Financial Officer to Participate in a ... MarketWatch
MarketWatch - WELT ONLINE
all 86 news articles


Straits Times

Government plans new credit, mortgage programs
O Jornal, MA - 13 hours ago
The Fed program for consumer debt will lend up to $200 billion to the holders of securities backed by various types of consumer loans such as credit cards, ...
US Unveils New Programs to Ease Credit New York Times
Washington’s $6.3 trillion bailout Boomers-Bank
Thanksgiving surprise: $800 billion more for the credit markets Los Angeles Times
Motley Fool - Detroit Free Press
all 2,147 news articles


Realtors(R) Federal Credit Union Hires Thomas A. Glatt as First CEO
MarketWatch - 11 hours ago
WASHINGTON, Dec 01, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- The REALTORS(R) Federal Credit Union board of directors today announced that veteran credit union leader ...


ExpressJet to Present at the Credit Suisse Global Airlines Conference
MarketWatch - 11 hours ago
today announced that the company will present at the Credit Suisse Global Airlines Conference in New York City. Jim Ream, President and CEO, will present a ...
Continental sees small growth in unit revenues in November Dallas Morning News
all 14 news articles


Calgary Herald

Credit-card industry may cut $2 trillion lines: analyst
Reuters - 5 hours ago
(Reuters) - The US credit-card industry may pull back well over $2 trillion of lines over the next 18 months due to risk aversion and regulatory changes, ...
Credit Suisse to close New York carbon desk-sources Reuters
Mexico's Comerci sells stake in credit business Reuters
Web retailers Amazon, eBay down on Cyber Monday Reuters
Reuters - Reuters
all 2,001 news articles


The Jewish Journal of greater L.A

Pastor apologizes for church credit card use
San Jose Mercury News,  USA - 11 hours ago
AP LOS ANGELES—The pastor for First AME Church in Los Angeles has apologized to his flock over his use of a church credit card for $122000 in personal ...
First AME pastor's credit card charges probed Los Angeles Times
Pastor Uses Church Credit Card to Buy $122000 in Jewelry and Vacations KTLA
First AME pastor apologizes to congregation for alleged misspending Los Angeles Times
all 42 news articles


Credit Market Risks Rise as Economic Slump Claims Industrials
Bloomberg - 5 hours ago
Credit-default swaps on the Markit CDX North America Investment-Grade index of 125 companies in the US and Canada rose 23 basis points to 263 basis points ...
Japan, Australia Corporate Bond Risk Soars, Credit Swaps Show Bloomberg
Australia Corporate Bond Risk Rises, Credit-Default Swaps Show Bloomberg
Bond Risk Rises on China Manufacturing Slump, US Retail Sales Bloomberg
all 6 news articles


BBC News

Credit Suisse cuts 650 jobs in UK
BBC News, UK - 4 hours ago
Troubled Swiss banking giant Credit Suisse has confirmed that it will cut 650 jobs from its UK workforce. The bank has has struggled since the onset of the ...
Credit Suisse to cut around 650 jobs in Britain International Herald Tribune
Credit Suisse axes 650 jobs TeleText
Credit Suisse cuts 650 jobs Manchester Online
The Press Association - TeleText
all 79 news articles


CEP News

S&P affirms Macy's credit rating, negative outlook
CNNMoney.com - 8 hours ago
NEW YORK (Associated Press) - Standard & Poor's Ratings Services on Monday affirmed its credit ratings for department store operator Macy's Inc., ...
Standard & Poor's assigns eBay an 'A-' debt rating CNNMoney.com
all 9 news articles


BBC News

Japan, Australia Policy Makers Need to Revive Credit (Update1)
Bloomberg - 1 hour ago
Credit markets seized up after the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. on Sept. 15, spurring governments and central banks around the world to bail ...
Bank of Japan to announce new credit steps: reports AFP
Japan set for new steps to fight credit crunch RTE.ie
Japan set to tackle lending costs BBC News
Bloomberg - Bloomberg
all 157 news articles

Credit - Google News

home | site map
© 2006