Ten people tried to become Sarah Corbridge last spring.
The Communication junior said she had her identity stolen by a group of people in Wisconsin looking to scam their way to multiple credit cards and thousands of dollars in electronics.
“Once someone steals your identity, they usually give it to all of their friends so it ends up being a huge group of them,” she said.
Americans reported more than 800,000 cases of fraud in 2007, according to the Federal Trade Commission. Illinois ranked 11th highest in the U.S. in number of identity theft complaints.
“I think when things get tight, people tend to turn to crime, and identity theft is an easier crime to commit than a lot of other ones,” Weinberg senior Andrew Lange said.
College students are one of the fastest-growing demographics for identity theft, said James Smith, branch manager of Evanston’s First Northern Credit Union.
“You’re so heavily marketed to by credit card companies,” Smith said. “And you’re also somewhat transient in terms of changing address every year or being in a residence for nine months and not forwarding the mail as you should.”
People ages 18 to 29 reported a higher number of identity thefts than any other age group – 32 percent of all complaints in Illinois and 28 percent of complaints nationally – in 2007, according to the FTC.
“I think college kids are really susceptible,” Corbridge said. “You’re on your own for the first time, and you’re learning how to be financially independent.”
The national economy could also be adding to the rise in identity thefts.
“Any time there is a downturn in the economy and we have an environment in which unemployment is on the rise, people feel desperate,” Smith said.
While Evanston Police Cmdr. Tom Guenther has not seen a spike in identity thefts, he said they are reported throughout the year.
“Unfortunately, there are a lot of apartment buildings in Evanston where some of the information goes in the mailbox and some of it doesn’t fit,” Guenther said.
This provides many opportunities to steal private information and offers for pre-approved credit cards. Credit card fraud is the most commonly reported form of identity theft, according to the FTC, and the Internet has greatly facilitated thieves’ ability to steal identities.
“With so much commerce done on the Internet and over the phone using credit card numbers, the reality is, it’s fairly easy to get a hold of someone’s credit card,” Guenther said.
Experts and victims of identity theft emphasize the importance of noticing the fraud as soon as it begins.
“If you catch (credit card fraud) early, it’s a lot easier than after all the charges have been made,” Corbridge said.
A police report should then be filed “as quickly as possible,” Guenther said, and accounts that can be accessed with the stolen information should be closed immediately.
Despite the ease with which identities can be stolen in today’s “Information Age,” there are many ways to prevent it from happening.
Smith suggested using free credit reports to track credit history as a tool for noticing fraud.
“Once you have established credit, the annual credit report is a very powerful tool that’s available to everybody,” he said.
Medill junior Gemma Baltazar said she checks her credit card statements daily and shreds documents revealing private information.
“I make sure that when I throw away my receipts, I tear them up,” she said. “And I don’t give out my Social Security number unless I absolutely have to.”
