Criminal masterminds like Bernie Madoff and stage magicians like David Copperfield have relied upon carefully crafted "artful dodges" to deceive their target audiences over the years and achieve their desired results-fraud or entertainment. Now, Identity Theft Secrets peels back the curtain of mystery that allows criminals to steal our most precious resources-our financial assets and reputation. Minimize your vulnerabilities and maximize your defenses using the strategies provided by author and expert Dale Penn, who comes to the subject with a unique background in insurance and risk-management training as well as personal experience fighting financial crime. You can protect your family, your business, and your credit rating through thoughtful, effective preparation. With clarity and vivid detail, Identity Theft Secrets will explain how you can . identify and secure the private information that thieves want most; . isolate areas of your life or business that need enhanced privacy protection; . close personal security loopholes that are still leaving you vulnerable; . secure the wireless technology devices that you depend on most; . create a plan to safeguard or restore your most valued private information and maintain a personal information safety zone; . navigate the Internet without the constant fear of malicious attacks. Learn to protect yourself, your business, and your loved ones from painful financial fraud; Identity Theft Secrets will show you how. "Dale Penn demystifies identity theft. This book is not just an easy read; it is a must read!" -Deborah Call, Associate Dean, USC School of Law

Identity Theft Secrets

Exposing the Tricks of the Trade!By Dale Penn

iUniverse, Inc.

Copyright © 2011 Dale Penn
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4620-0859-9

Contents

Acknowledgments......................................................................................xiIntroduction.........................................................................................xiiiChapter 1 A Rampant Crime: The Disturbing Statistics.................................................1Chapter 2 Falling Into the Shadows of Identity Theft.................................................17Chapter 3 Tricks for Making Yourself a Smaller Target................................................33Chapter 4 Fighting Back with the Three Ds............................................................51Chapter 5 Home Improvement: Shelter Your Home from Identity Theft....................................61Chapter 6 The Shocking Identities of Identity Thieves................................................83Chapter 7 Take Action! A Step-by-Step Resolution Plan for Identity Theft Victims.....................95Chapter 8 Guarding Your Habit Habitat................................................................111Chapter 9 A Long Walk to Financial Freedom...........................................................123Chapter 10 Identity Theft Resources..................................................................133Bibliography.........................................................................................141

Chapter One

A Rampant Crime: The
Disturbing Statistics

* * *

For five immature years, I lived a life of illusion
and tricks.
—Frank W. Abagnale,
author of Catch Me If You Can

How it all Began

According to the Federal Trade Commission, identitytheft is "when someone appropriates your personalinformation (like your social security number or creditcard account number) to commit fraud or theft."

Many people assume that identity theft emerged withthe dawning of the Internet—but this insidious crimehas been around for decades, possibly centuries.Fraudsters have stolen identities, staged elaboratecons, and swindled unsuspecting victims since thebeginning of time.

Obviously, the game has changed over the years.Hundreds of years ago, identity theft was a muchgrislier crime. What made it so ghastly? The identitythief often had to murder a victim in order to take overhis identity.

In days gone by, stealing an identity involved massiveamounts of scheming, dramatic disguises, and thethreat of severe punishment for the thieves caughtin the fraudulent act. Because identity theft wassuch a complex crime to commit, it was relativelyuncommon.

But things have changed. These days, identity theftrarely involves murder or any physical harm at all, forthat matter. As a matter of fact, the modern identity thiefnever even has to come into contact with you to stealyour identity. All he needs are just a couple of personaldetails about you. Lucky for him, this information isreadily available in a mailbox, a dumpster, or online.More often than not, the victim doesn't even know thathe or she has been hit.

"In the age of instant credit and preapproved creditoffers, identity thieves require little more than yourname and social security number, plus your date ofbirth if they get lucky, to assume your identity," Mari J.Frank, Esq. writes in her book Safeguard Your Identity:Protect Yourself with a Personal Privacy Audit.

In 2010, Mari also authored The Complete Idiot's Guideto Recovering from Identity Theft. A respected leaderin the fight against identity theft, Mari Frank is anauthor, identity theft advocate, attorney, and CaliforniaState University professor. In Safeguard Your Identity,she wrote, "These fraudsters are skillful at using avariety of low-tech and high-tech methods to obtainyour personal identity."

In other words, identity theft is a much easier crimeto commit in modern times. So easy, in fact, that ateenager could pull it off. Take Frank W. Abagnale, forexample. He famously practiced the art of identity theftback in the 1960s—when he was only sixteen yearsold.

Abagnale's Infamous Tale

Unless you were living under a rock in 2002, you probablysaw or at least heard about the Oscar-nominated movieCatch Me If You Can, starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Basedon the autobiographical book of the same title, thiswildly popular film follows the fascinating life of a youngbut internationally renowned con artist.

If you missed out on the book and the movie, here'show this captivating tale goes: At the age of sixteen,Frank Abagnale ran away from home and jumpedheadfirst into a magical web of lies, cons, and thievery.He quickly became a world-famous imposter and checkfraud artist who was sought after by law enforcementofficers across the globe.

"I had enjoyed a misguided and regrettable run as oneof the most successful con artists the world has everknown," he writes in his second book, The Art of theSteal. Here was a kid who had not even made it pastthe tenth grade, but he successfully posed as a Pan Ampilot, a stock broker, an assistant district attorney, asociology professor, and even a pediatrician.

But it was the check fraud that eventually put thecon man behind bars. "Through my various hustles, Ipassed something like $2.5 million worth of checks,"he says. "I was proficient enough at cashing fraudulentchecks that I earned the distinction of becoming one ofthe most hunted criminals by the FBI."

Luckily, after serving his time, the criminal switchedsides. As a "white-collar crime specialist," he beganspeaking to banks, businesses, and law enforcementagencies about check fraud. Now regarded as oneof the leading experts on counterfeiting and securedocuments, he has taught at the FBI Academy andlectures audiences throughout the world.

"In a certain sense, I'm still a con artist," he writes. "I'mjust putting down a positive con these days, as opposedto the negative con I used in the past. I've applied thesame relentless attention to working on stopping fraudthat I once applied to perpetuating fraud."

Identity Theft Reaches All-Time Highs

Although fraudsters, con artists, and hustlers havealways been around, identity theft only surfaced as awidespread problem in the mid-1990s. The media firststarted throwing around the phrase "identity theft" in1996, when financial crimes against consumers reachedan all-time high.

At the time, financial crimes, including loan, mortgage,and credit card fraud, were becoming commonplacethroughout the nation—affecting thousands of un-suspecting consumers. Identity theft has continued togrow, spreading like a financial wildfire and taking itsvictims by surprise.

A Raging Epidemic

"For five immature years, I lived a life of illusion andtricks," Abagnale writes. And that's exactly what theseperpetrators do—they put on a flashy little magic showand hide behind a series of diversions to throw victimsand law enforcement off their tracks. That's why it'sso difficult to catch these sharks and extinguish theflames of the identity theft firestorm.

We truly are facing an epidemic here—the magnitude ofthe nation's identity theft problem is absolutely mind-boggling. It's a train wreck. I know I've said it before,but it's worth pointing out again: identity theft is thefastest-growing crime in the United States.

But don't take my word for it. Just look at the...