After reading this article, by Charles Montaldo over identity theft, I will make sure to follow all of his helpful tips. I had no clue identity theft was the fastest growing crime happening today in the United States. Criminals these days are so caught up with the wanting to commit uncalled for, deviant crimes. Crime is known as individual behaviors which go against the norms of society. These type of individuals need to get jobs, and leave the working population’s money alone. The victim will eventually notice their bank accounts and bank statements are not looking to good, and their first reaction will be to close their accounts. Hopefully we all check our bank accounts and bank statements, because we can become clueless of the pitiful thefts stealing our identity. According to Charles Montaldo, we can prevent identity theft from happening to us by, keeping our secretive belongings to ourselves; also we should use passwords that are not commonly used. Forget about using our mothers’ maiden name for our passwords, or the last four digits of our social security number. I found it very interesting to see that it is very easy for criminals to get all your personal information and identity. To me criminals are very smart individuals. It is very shocking to me, that they do not pursue their intelligence in the working field. We live in a society in which we cannot trust anyone. Criminals these days have completely washed out the total meaning of socialization. They forgot about the norms, values, behaviors, and social skills within their society. Dr. Gullion brought attention to our class on the topic of organized crimes. In some cases this can apply to identity theft. An organize crime is illegal activity by a group that is set up specifically to break the law in pursuit of a profit. He mentioned to never use your pin number at the pump, for gas. It has been reported that criminals in our area are going around stealing peoples account number and pin numbers from the gas pump. Thank you for telling us, Greg! Elizabeth De Los Santos
As technology and science continue to grow and advance in our society, so does the possibilities of criminal activities and behavior. Identity theft and identity fraud are good examples of a new wave of criminals. These criminals do not use brute force, violence, or intimidation. Instead, they depend on their intelligence and ability to interact with modern technologies to commit their crimes. What is truely facinating is how little information is needed to commit one of these modern offenses. It takes quite a bit of technological savvy to be able to pull money out of a bank account that belongs to someone else, using only their phone number and home address. Commenting on what Elizabeth said, just because we perceive that a crime is uncalled for, doesn't mean that these modern day criminals agree. Our advances in technology open new and exciting possiblities to us, but some of those possibilities including taking advantage of a tool that was created for the betterment of humanity and using it for selfish gain. Montaldo suggested not giving out our personal information to people who we do not know. Everyone should keep in mind that our personal information is our own and that it should not be given out recklessly. To address Elizabeth's comment again, we cannot simply explain away crimes of theft with the simple statement of "...[Theives] need to get jobs, and leave the working populations money alone." There is a plethora of factors that are not addressed by this. This opinion leave the impression that all thieves do not have jobs, and that the only money taken is from the working population. As learned before in our previous sociology class, sometimes criminals are inventors who reject the norms and goals of society and create their own. This new breed of intelligent internet hackers are just the same as Al Capone, inventors. They have identified an area in society they can exploit and have used it to their benefit. This is why the simply don't "...pursue their intelligence in the working field." To say that criminals have washed out the total meaning of socialization is a bold declaration indeed. When in fact, the whole reason we have advanced societies is because of crime. When crimes first came along, governments, laws, and authorities had to be created to help minimize the impact of crime. Crime is the spark that has started all of advanded civilizations. Now, civilization is at a point where crime because a weakness that must be dealt with as affectively as possible, but we must keep in mind that this is all possible because of it. And not following the norms, values, behaviors, or social skills of society is not crime, but deviance, it only is a crime if the society has written it done, put it into law, and assigned punishments for the offenses.
Having seen how much work and time is involved in resolving the issue once it happens prevention is definately key. One thing that really stood out to me was to not give out your SSN as an identifier, many services and companies use SNN as the main way to prove your identity. I had no idea that you could ask them to use something other than your SNN. I think a lot of the tips are common sense but nobody really thinks about it since they never think it can happen to them.
Identity theft is certainly a problem for everyone, especially the movie stars e.g., Ben Bernanke, Will Smith, Oprah Winfrey and others. According to the President Identity Task Force Report. Identity theft increase 26% since 2007. Even though identity theft is a serious problem can we really stop it? If Federal Reserve chair Bernanke is a target then what does that say for us common folks. It could happen to anyone at any time. Precaution needs to always be taken but criminals are getting smarter. I just got a letter from one of the hotels where I stayed, and was just informed that my information was stolen and to be on the lookout for identity theft. With companies requesting your personal information to get a loan, rent a car, get a credit card, how can you keep your identity safe. Especially when criminals are just as technologically savvy as security firms and are stealing their information. We just have to constantly check our information and hope for the best.
Another way to help with identity theft is to check your credit reports at least once a year to make sure that nothing shows up that looks out of place. For instance, make sure the addresses they have listed are correct along with any name changes because some companies report full names (including middle), while others use initials and even nicknames. Pamsam said that criminals are getting smarter and she is right because it seems like they are always one step ahead of the consumer doing things that most of us would never dream of. Since crime is their profession, they will always be ahead of those of us who have legitimate professions. We in turn need to be proactive and make sure that we keep our information private.
Good advice from Elaine. Reporting incidents of identity theft to credit companies is easy! All you have to do is click the button, "I have been a victim of identify theft" for each major company and then they put your credit on alert. Easy peezy! :)
For most people, identity theft is not an issue until it happens to them. Following the advice given here by Montaldo can be very useful. Nobody ever thinks that they will be the vicitm of identiy theft. Personally, I always shred my my mail that I get about credit card applications or bills. About three years I have gotten in a terrible accident and was sent to the hospital whre they performed about 6 cat scans on me and my bill came up to about $12,000. Without any insurance, I still have not been able to pay out that bill, LOL. So, whoever tries to use my credit will have bad luck. I know havent been able to get credit in any rent-to-own stores. Knowing this I still go through the process of beign careful about sharing any information on the internet and while talking on the phone. Some companies now offer free credit reports from the top three major cretdit compaines. If one has bad credit there are jobs that one will not able to get if one those scores is bad (for example, a job dealing with finances).
I remember seeing a commercial about a website that is supposed to prevent identity theft and automatically I thought for many it would sound like a great idea to have this new company take away all your identity theft problems, but identity thieves are clandestine kind of people, they catch your eye with luring websites or mail and the next thing you know, you're at your bank trying to figure out why your account is overdrawn by $3000 and where those mysterious charges are coming from or it could be possible to be suddenly ambushed by law enforcement or SWAT for mistaken identity because the thief could be a wanted man or woman on the run from the law. I know that last one sounds kind of far fetched, but an identity thief could be anybody with any background. I agree with checking credit reports as often as possible because like Demetre said, with the new technology, these thieves have even more access of ways to commit this type of crime, such as the scam about identity thieves stealing identities from gas pumps at gas stations. Times are changing and while some thieves and criminals are getting dumber, there are many who are advancing with the times and getting smarter. With a recession people are ready to get their hands on money, money and more money any way they can so that they may enjoy what they believe to be the luxuries of life or to keep enjoying the luxuries of life.All I can say is protect yourselves out there and be smart. Don't gravitate to websites and respond to mail that looks as if they could be a scam. A scam looks like normal mail and a reliable website or anything that one may find to be your "ordinary," however, I believe that there are little subtle signs that give scams away.
New technology is being developed everyday and it is meant to help and make things easier for the population, but it is also making it easier for criminals to obtain personal information. Technology is being used against us. This article shows how easy it is for someone to take your identity. It is a very scary thought that someone can get a job, apartment, and credit card under your name. It was helpful reading this article. I will definitely use these tips, after the incident that we talked about in class on what was going on in the gas stations. I know that after you have been a victim of identity theft it is a difficult and long process to clean up the mess that was made.
It is so easy to have something that is invisible to be taken away without even knowing that you have now become a victim of a crime. This crime could do a lot of damage to ones credibility, along with time that ones has to put into taking care of making sure that the person does not do more harm to their credit. For those who work hard and try to do the right thing but, only to have someone carelessly take something so valuable and treat it without respect. I have always been on the conscience side when it comes to my information. The number one thing I do is shred, shred, and shred anything with my name on it, even junk mail. I try to check my credit report once a year to keep on top of my credit. Everyone should take these steps into consideration. These steps should but put on pamphlet and given to anyone who is trying to open a new account. This information could help people become aware of just how easy it is to have your identity taken. This might also help them to not become a victim of this crime.
I sometimes worry about being a victim of identity theft, because of the many things that I’ve bought online. I know I don’t really have good credit because I only have one credit card and I haven’t really tried to apply for any other ones. I’ve seen many cases of identity theft on the news and I feel sorry for them because they explain everything that has happened to them after they have gotten their identity stolen from them, it’s as if they’ve had something so precious token from them, I guess what hurts them the most is that they have to start all over again from the beginning. It especially harms the lives of those who want to buy a house because wit out good credit they won’t be able to get a mortgage loan if they need one. I always see my mom looking through her papers and cutting them into pieces but even then I think that it is still possible to get any information from those papers that are just cut into pieces, but not so long ago I discovered that she would burn those papers in a barbeque grill that we have in our backyard. My mom is not only protecting herself from having her identity stolen she is also being safe by burning papers in her grill. Lol
Organized crime here! These "creatures" yes, I am going to call them creatures, what the heck do they think? That people can't be smart enough to protect their identity and whatnot. So these creatures basically work together to brake the law for profit (organized crime).Well I guess sometimes people can't protect their identity or they might think they are when they actually aren't,but I sure as heck am. You better believe I will follow the tips given in order to watch out from my identity being stolen. To be honest, I had no idea that identity theft was a big issue. I mean I had seen people on news and stuff talking about what all they have lost due to he "creature". What does trip me out is that yes, this is a crime: a behavior that goes against norms of society, but there's like no physical violence of any kind involved. Look people, just be very careful out there about your identity, not just with strangers but it could happen with family members as well, YOU NEVER KNOW. I just hope that all crimes of this sort don't go under the "dark figure of crime" b/c that would truly be some b.s...
My Mom always likes to remind me that identity theft is possible. But she seems nearly paranoid about it. Nevertheless, it is something one needs to be aware of in order to protect one's finances and to avoid misfortune. Some people are smart, desparate, and/or patient enough to try to steal someone's identity. Therefore, this article is correct that one must be very careful to be certain of who one is doing business with and to be careful about how one shares information. There are certain kinds of people who will do anything for money and to exploit others. One could apply a Marxist interpretation to this in that once there is an opportunity, albeit an illegal one, to advance oneself at the expense of others, criminals will take it. The more technology there is, the more crimes there will be. That increases the need for individuals to be on guard and educate themselves about potential dangers.
These days, identity theft is one of the biggest problems in our society today and it does not look like it is going to stop any time neither. New technology is invented everyday and criminals are only getting smarter. A large part of crime in the United States has transitioned from the streets to the internet and all types of criminals have got involved. Anyone from a computer geek to the mob has taken part in this worldwide revolution that is catching everybody off guard. Statistics show that over ten million people a year are victims of identity theft and the numbers are only going to keep increasing if this government does not step in and do something. The problem is that our government honestly cannot stop this uprising from happening because the number of criminals participating in this deviant act is growing every day. The only thing that people around the world can really do about the situation is to never give out their information to a site they do not trust and to just be careful, but if it does happen report it immediately.
Charles Montaldo’s article on Identity Theft confirmed that stolen identity is one of the most popular types of fraud being committed today. As explained by the classical school of criminology argues is that people choosing to break the law are doing so by acts of free will. Mr. Montaldo provided very useful and vital information regarding our personal information. Another surprising fact that one may consider is that children’s identity theft also takes place. We need to teach our children how to protect their personal information and to warn them about giving out their personal information especially online. We can’t be too trusting with their information also. If you become a victim, I hope no one ever has to go through this, you can file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission. I know of two people that this happened to and it has not been an easy road to recovery
Identity theft is one of if not the biggest crime in the U.S. because it is so easy to commit. I believe it is the one crime that everybody will fall victim to or will know somebody who has fallen victim to it. The reason why is because we really don’t consider the activities we take as a pawn for identity theft. For example people will use credit cards and debit cards at stores or restaurants because they don’t have cash on them. We recently learned about people identities getting stolen at the gas station because they are swiping their cards thinking the machine was legit when it wasn’t. Nobody thinks about getting all their information stolen from a machine at a gas station. Technology has come so far that people are finding ways to manipulate it to get what they want. The ones who can’t steal your information from you physically will steal your information from you through the use of technology. Even though technology seems to be the discrete way to steal a person’s identity, it’s not the only way. Receipts, bank statements, mail, social security number, insurance card, and many other documents can be used to steal your identity. That’s why it is important to put these things away. If there are documents you have that you don’t need shred it. Don’t just ball it up and throw it away. Someone could dig through your trash to try to get that information. It’s important to watch your surroundings and be careful with your belongings. Hopefully you can protect yourself from identity theft.
This is really helpful for college kids especiall! I know a lot of us like me are not very careful when it comes to their identity because its a thing that we say wont happen to us. There isn't a way you can totally stop it from happening but their are very good ways of preventing it. Taking care of your information is really important because I've seen people that their lives have been destroyed due identity theft. It will destroy the person's credit and ability to purchase anything. Since Greg told us about the credit card machines that can take your info when you get gas, I have been extremely careful about a machine telling me it doesn't work!! So far so good but better to be safe then sorry.
CHECK YOUR CREDIT REPORT! Identity theft is a scary crime considering you may never come in contact with the person actually doing the crime. Our society is turning into more of a “cash” based system due to all the credit/debit card fraud. Due to more security cameras, people have been caught and prosecuted, although many are still out there today spending someone else’s hard earned money. It goes to show that your identity isn’t trusted in anyone’s hands except your own. A person can never let their guard down, because the one time you do, might change the future for yourself. Watch who watches you! Whether it be charging materialistic items, necessities, or medical circumstance- criminals will continue to take advantage of someone else’s wallet in order to benefit themselves! In a matter of minutes an identity thief can tell you more about yourself than you maybe able to remember. In addition, they can use this information to “become” you. More so now than ever, people are analyzing their banking accounts and watching every charge made on their credit cards. I also agree with W. Chavez “shred shred shred”, this is an important concept that was introduced to me at a young age due to my parents having to deal with credit card fraud!
Identity Theft is quickly becoming one of the most common crimes in the world. It is very difficult to guard against, and law enforcement is not yet equipped to handle most cases. Since the crime is still in it's infancy, many people have no clue how devastating it can be. Someone has their identity stolen every 4 seconds in the United States. Its a rapid problem and it needs to stop.
This was some very helpful advice, I appreciate those wonderful tips. After reading the comment and advice from Elaine, I realized and noticed an address on my credit report that I never lived at. It looks like I need to look into this to make sure I'm not a victim of this horrible crime. Is there really a such thing that will prevent identity theft?
Almost everything is ran by computers, tons of people shop over the internet. buying something online does scare me, but who ever steals my identity will not be happy. i feel uncomfortable everytime i list my personal stuff online, cause who knows who is going to look at it or find it. i would much rather drive further to buy something than order it online. this crime is going to keep growing especialy with new online technology. protecting my self from identity theft should not be one of my worries. it should be made harder to steal ones identity and people doing it should have more meaningful prosecutions. this can ruins someones life if it is not resolved correctly.
I wish I would have read this before someone got my debit card information and spent all my money!! Luckily I got it all back, but it was still a horrible experience. I am super careful with everything now. My shredder is my best friend because I shred everything. No matter how carful I am being, it is still in the back of my head that it will happen again. It is a shame that people have found a way to basically turn everything into a crime opportunity. I totally see how identity theft and fraud are the fasting growing crimes in the United States. Reading this article brings all the feelings of fear back and the second paragraph scares me even more to know that they only need as little information as an address and telephone number to do this. This is exactly why I shred all my mail. This crime is on the rise and I don’t want to fall victim to it again. This is why I rarely use my pin number anymore. People need to get jobs and not depend on others for their personal gain.
This really is an interesting article. I just wished i read this before it has happend to me. It turned out someone stole my identity over in California and there really wasn't anything i could do. I wish this article also states what we should do if it is already happening to us.
I remember when my mother in law said she got a really important call and they needed her credit card number and she happily obliged.
Identify thieves mostly prey on the elderly because they aren't in the KNOW with today's technology.
I've had something happen to me once. It was completely my fault. I thought I had entered a legit website, it asked for my account password and within ten minutes, my World of Warcraft game was taken from me and my credit card was in danger of being stolen since it had been on the WoW account.
I know, it's still a game, but I felt violated none the less.
After reading this article, by Charles Montaldo over identity theft, I will make sure to follow all of his helpful tips. I had no clue identity theft was the fastest growing crime happening today in the United States. Criminals these days are so caught up with the wanting to commit uncalled for, deviant crimes. Crime is known as individual behaviors which go against the norms of society. These type of individuals need to get jobs, and leave the working population’s money alone. The victim will eventually notice their bank accounts and bank statements are not looking to good, and their first reaction will be to close their accounts. Hopefully we all check our bank accounts and bank statements, because we can become clueless of the pitiful thefts stealing our identity. According to Charles Montaldo, we can prevent identity theft from happening to us by, keeping our secretive belongings to ourselves; also we should use passwords that are not commonly used. Forget about using our mothers’ maiden name for our passwords, or the last four digits of our social security number. I found it very interesting to see that it is very easy for criminals to get all your personal information and identity. To me criminals are very smart individuals. It is very shocking to me, that they do not pursue their intelligence in the working field. We live in a society in which we cannot trust anyone. Criminals these days have completely washed out the total meaning of socialization. They forgot about the norms, values, behaviors, and social skills within their society. Dr. Gullion brought attention to our class on the topic of organized crimes. In some cases this can apply to identity theft. An organize crime is illegal activity by a group that is set up specifically to break the law in pursuit of a profit. He mentioned to never use your pin number at the pump, for gas. It has been reported that criminals in our area are going around stealing peoples account number and pin numbers from the gas pump. Thank you for telling us, Greg!
ReplyDeleteElizabeth De Los Santos
As technology and science continue to grow and advance in our society, so does the possibilities of criminal activities and behavior. Identity theft and identity fraud are good examples of a new wave of criminals. These criminals do not use brute force, violence, or intimidation. Instead, they depend on their intelligence and ability to interact with modern technologies to commit their crimes. What is truely facinating is how little information is needed to commit one of these modern offenses. It takes quite a bit of technological savvy to be able to pull money out of a bank account that belongs to someone else, using only their phone number and home address. Commenting on what Elizabeth said, just because we perceive that a crime is uncalled for, doesn't mean that these modern day criminals agree. Our advances in technology open new and exciting possiblities to us, but some of those possibilities including taking advantage of a tool that was created for the betterment of humanity and using it for selfish gain. Montaldo suggested not giving out our personal information to people who we do not know. Everyone should keep in mind that our personal information is our own and that it should not be given out recklessly. To address Elizabeth's comment again, we cannot simply explain away crimes of theft with the simple statement of "...[Theives] need to get jobs, and leave the working populations money alone." There is a plethora of factors that are not addressed by this. This opinion leave the impression that all thieves do not have jobs, and that the only money taken is from the working population. As learned before in our previous sociology class, sometimes criminals are inventors who reject the norms and goals of society and create their own. This new breed of intelligent internet hackers are just the same as Al Capone, inventors. They have identified an area in society they can exploit and have used it to their benefit. This is why the simply don't "...pursue their intelligence in the working field." To say that criminals have washed out the total meaning of socialization is a bold declaration indeed. When in fact, the whole reason we have advanced societies is because of crime. When crimes first came along, governments, laws, and authorities had to be created to help minimize the impact of crime. Crime is the spark that has started all of advanded civilizations. Now, civilization is at a point where crime because a weakness that must be dealt with as affectively as possible, but we must keep in mind that this is all possible because of it. And not following the norms, values, behaviors, or social skills of society is not crime, but deviance, it only is a crime if the society has written it done, put it into law, and assigned punishments for the offenses.
ReplyDeleteHaving seen how much work and time is involved in resolving the issue once it happens prevention is definately key. One thing that really stood out to me was to not give out your SSN as an identifier, many services and companies use SNN as the main way to prove your identity. I had no idea that you could ask them to use something other than your SNN. I think a lot of the tips are common sense but nobody really thinks about it since they never think it can happen to them.
ReplyDeleteIdentity theft is certainly a problem for everyone, especially the movie stars e.g., Ben Bernanke, Will Smith, Oprah Winfrey and others. According to the President Identity Task Force Report. Identity theft increase 26% since 2007. Even though identity theft is a serious problem can we really stop it? If Federal Reserve chair Bernanke is a target then what does that say for us common folks. It could happen to anyone at any time. Precaution needs to always be taken but criminals are getting smarter. I just got a letter from one of the hotels where I stayed, and was just informed that my information was stolen and to be on the lookout for identity theft. With companies requesting your personal information to get a loan, rent a car, get a credit card, how can you keep your identity safe. Especially when criminals are just as technologically savvy as security firms and are stealing their information. We just have to constantly check our information and hope for the best.
ReplyDeleteAnother way to help with identity theft is to check your credit reports at least once a year to make sure that nothing shows up that looks out of place. For instance, make sure the addresses they have listed are correct along with any name changes because some companies report full names (including middle), while others use initials and even nicknames. Pamsam said that criminals are getting smarter and she is right because it seems like they are always one step ahead of the consumer doing things that most of us would never dream of. Since crime is their profession, they will always be ahead of those of us who have legitimate professions. We in turn need to be proactive and make sure that we keep our information private.
ReplyDeleteGood advice from Elaine. Reporting incidents of identity theft to credit companies is easy! All you have to do is click the button, "I have been a victim of identify theft" for each major company and then they put your credit on alert. Easy peezy! :)
ReplyDeleteFor most people, identity theft is not an issue until it happens to them. Following the advice given here by Montaldo can be very useful. Nobody ever thinks that they will be the vicitm of identiy theft. Personally, I always shred my my mail that I get about credit card applications or bills. About three years I have gotten in a terrible accident and was sent to the hospital whre they performed about 6 cat scans on me and my bill came up to about $12,000. Without any insurance, I still have not been able to pay out that bill, LOL. So, whoever tries to use my credit will have bad luck. I know havent been able to get credit in any rent-to-own stores. Knowing this I still go through the process of beign careful about sharing any information on the internet and while talking on the phone.
ReplyDeleteSome companies now offer free credit reports from the top three major cretdit compaines. If one has bad credit there are jobs that one will not able to get if one those scores is bad (for example, a job dealing with finances).
I remember seeing a commercial about a website that is supposed to prevent identity theft and automatically I thought for many it would sound like a great idea to have this new company take away all your identity theft problems, but identity thieves are clandestine kind of people, they catch your eye with luring websites or mail and the next thing you know, you're at your bank trying to figure out why your account is overdrawn by $3000 and where those mysterious charges are coming from or it could be possible to be suddenly ambushed by law enforcement or SWAT for mistaken identity because the thief could be a wanted man or woman on the run from the law. I know that last one sounds kind of far fetched, but an identity thief could be anybody with any background. I agree with checking credit reports as often as possible because like Demetre said, with the new technology, these thieves have even more access of ways to commit this type of crime, such as the scam about identity thieves stealing identities from gas pumps at gas stations. Times are changing and while some thieves and criminals are getting dumber, there are many who are advancing with the times and getting smarter. With a recession people are ready to get their hands on money, money and more money any way they can so that they may enjoy what they believe to be the luxuries of life or to keep enjoying the luxuries of life.All I can say is protect yourselves out there and be smart. Don't gravitate to websites and respond to mail that looks as if they could be a scam. A scam looks like normal mail and a reliable website or anything that one may find to be your "ordinary," however, I believe that there are little subtle signs that give scams away.
ReplyDeleteNew technology is being developed everyday and it is meant to help and make things easier for the population, but it is also making it easier for criminals to obtain personal information. Technology is being used against us. This article shows how easy it is for someone to take your identity. It is a very scary thought that someone can get a job, apartment, and credit card under your name. It was helpful reading this article. I will definitely use these tips, after the incident that we talked about in class on what was going on in the gas stations. I know that after you have been a victim of identity theft it is a difficult and long process to clean up the mess that was made.
ReplyDelete- Sandra Orta
It is so easy to have something that is invisible to be taken away without even knowing that you have now become a victim of a crime. This crime could do a lot of damage to ones credibility, along with time that ones has to put into taking care of making sure that the person does not do more harm to their credit. For those who work hard and try to do the right thing but, only to have someone carelessly take something so valuable and treat it without respect. I have always been on the conscience side when it comes to my information. The number one thing I do is shred, shred, and shred anything with my name on it, even junk mail. I try to check my credit report once a year to keep on top of my credit. Everyone should take these steps into consideration. These steps should but put on pamphlet and given to anyone who is trying to open a new account. This information could help people become aware of just how easy it is to have your identity taken. This might also help them to not become a victim of this crime.
ReplyDeleteI sometimes worry about being a victim of identity theft, because of the many things that I’ve bought online. I know I don’t really have good credit because I only have one credit card and I haven’t really tried to apply for any other ones. I’ve seen many cases of identity theft on the news and I feel sorry for them because they explain everything that has happened to them after they have gotten their identity stolen from them, it’s as if they’ve had something so precious token from them, I guess what hurts them the most is that they have to start all over again from the beginning. It especially harms the lives of those who want to buy a house because wit out good credit they won’t be able to get a mortgage loan if they need one. I always see my mom looking through her papers and cutting them into pieces but even then I think that it is still possible to get any information from those papers that are just cut into pieces, but not so long ago I discovered that she would burn those papers in a barbeque grill that we have in our backyard. My mom is not only protecting herself from having her identity stolen she is also being safe by burning papers in her grill. Lol
ReplyDeleteOrganized crime here! These "creatures" yes, I am going to call them creatures, what the heck do they think? That people can't be smart enough to protect their identity and whatnot. So these creatures basically work together to brake the law for profit (organized crime).Well I guess sometimes people can't protect their identity or they might think they are when they actually aren't,but I sure as heck am. You better believe I will follow the tips given in order to watch out from my identity being stolen. To be honest, I had no idea that identity theft was a big issue. I mean I had seen people on news and stuff talking about what all they have lost due to he "creature". What does trip me out is that yes, this is a crime: a behavior that goes against norms of society, but there's like no physical violence of any kind involved. Look people, just be very careful out there about your identity, not just with strangers but it could happen with family members as well, YOU NEVER KNOW. I just hope that all crimes of this sort don't go under the "dark figure of crime" b/c that would truly be some b.s...
ReplyDeleteMy Mom always likes to remind me that identity theft is possible. But she seems nearly paranoid about it. Nevertheless, it is something one needs to be aware of in order to protect one's finances and to avoid misfortune. Some people are smart, desparate, and/or patient enough to try to steal someone's identity. Therefore, this article is correct that one must be very careful to be certain of who one is doing business with and to be careful about how one shares information. There are certain kinds of people who will do anything for money and to exploit others. One could apply a Marxist interpretation to this in that once there is an opportunity, albeit an illegal one, to advance oneself at the expense of others, criminals will take it. The more technology there is, the more crimes there will be. That increases the need for individuals to be on guard and educate themselves about potential dangers.
ReplyDeleteThese days, identity theft is one of the biggest problems in our society today and it does not look like it is going to stop any time neither. New technology is invented everyday and criminals are only getting smarter. A large part of crime in the United States has transitioned from the streets to the internet and all types of criminals have got involved. Anyone from a computer geek to the mob has taken part in this worldwide revolution that is catching everybody off guard. Statistics show that over ten million people a year are victims of identity theft and the numbers are only going to keep increasing if this government does not step in and do something. The problem is that our government honestly cannot stop this uprising from happening because the number of criminals participating in this deviant act is growing every day. The only thing that people around the world can really do about the situation is to never give out their information to a site they do not trust and to just be careful, but if it does happen report it immediately.
ReplyDeleteCharles Montaldo’s article on Identity Theft confirmed that stolen identity is one of the most popular types of fraud being committed today. As explained by the classical school of criminology argues is that people choosing to break the law are doing so by acts of free will. Mr. Montaldo provided very useful and vital information regarding our personal information. Another surprising fact that one may consider is that children’s identity theft also takes place. We need to teach our children how to protect their personal information and to warn them about giving out their personal information especially online. We can’t be too trusting with their information also. If you become a victim, I hope no one ever has to go through this, you can file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission. I know of two people that this happened to and it has not been an easy road to recovery
ReplyDeleteIdentity theft is one of if not the biggest crime in the U.S. because it is so easy to commit. I believe it is the one crime that everybody will fall victim to or will know somebody who has fallen victim to it. The reason why is because we really don’t consider the activities we take as a pawn for identity theft. For example people will use credit cards and debit cards at stores or restaurants because they don’t have cash on them. We recently learned about people identities getting stolen at the gas station because they are swiping their cards thinking the machine was legit when it wasn’t. Nobody thinks about getting all their information stolen from a machine at a gas station. Technology has come so far that people are finding ways to manipulate it to get what they want. The ones who can’t steal your information from you physically will steal your information from you through the use of technology. Even though technology seems to be the discrete way to steal a person’s identity, it’s not the only way. Receipts, bank statements, mail, social security number, insurance card, and many other documents can be used to steal your identity. That’s why it is important to put these things away. If there are documents you have that you don’t need shred it. Don’t just ball it up and throw it away. Someone could dig through your trash to try to get that information. It’s important to watch your surroundings and be careful with your belongings. Hopefully you can protect yourself from identity theft.
ReplyDeleteThis is really helpful for college kids especiall! I know a lot of us like me are not very careful when it comes to their identity because its a thing that we say wont happen to us. There isn't a way you can totally stop it from happening but their are very good ways of preventing it. Taking care of your information is really important because I've seen people that their lives have been destroyed due identity theft. It will destroy the person's credit and ability to purchase anything. Since Greg told us about the credit card machines that can take your info when you get gas, I have been extremely careful about a machine telling me it doesn't work!! So far so good but better to be safe then sorry.
ReplyDeleteCHECK YOUR CREDIT REPORT!
ReplyDeleteIdentity theft is a scary crime considering you may never come in contact with the person actually doing the crime. Our society is turning into more of a “cash” based system due to all the credit/debit card fraud. Due to more security cameras, people have been caught and prosecuted, although many are still out there today spending someone else’s hard earned money. It goes to show that your identity isn’t trusted in anyone’s hands except your own. A person can never let their guard down, because the one time you do, might change the future for yourself. Watch who watches you!
Whether it be charging materialistic items, necessities, or medical circumstance- criminals will continue to take advantage of someone else’s wallet in order to benefit themselves!
In a matter of minutes an identity thief can tell you more about yourself than you maybe able to remember. In addition, they can use this information to “become” you.
More so now than ever, people are analyzing their banking accounts and watching every charge made on their credit cards. I also agree with W. Chavez “shred shred shred”, this is an important concept that was introduced to me at a young age due to my parents having to deal with credit card fraud!
Identity Theft is quickly becoming one of the most common crimes in the world. It is very difficult to guard against, and law enforcement is not yet equipped to handle most cases. Since the crime is still in it's infancy, many people have no clue how devastating it can be. Someone has their identity stolen every 4 seconds in the United States. Its a rapid problem and it needs to stop.
ReplyDeleteThis was some very helpful advice, I appreciate those wonderful tips. After reading the comment and advice from Elaine, I realized and noticed an address on my credit report that I never lived at. It looks like I need to look into this to make sure I'm not a victim of this horrible crime. Is there really a such thing that will prevent identity theft?
ReplyDeleteAlmost everything is ran by computers, tons of people shop over the internet. buying something online does scare me, but who ever steals my identity will not be happy. i feel uncomfortable everytime i list my personal stuff online, cause who knows who is going to look at it or find it. i would much rather drive further to buy something than order it online. this crime is going to keep growing especialy with new online technology. protecting my self from identity theft should not be one of my worries. it should be made harder to steal ones identity and people doing it should have more meaningful prosecutions. this can ruins someones life if it is not resolved correctly.
ReplyDeleteI wish I would have read this before someone got my debit card information and spent all my money!! Luckily I got it all back, but it was still a horrible experience. I am super careful with everything now. My shredder is my best friend because I shred everything. No matter how carful I am being, it is still in the back of my head that it will happen again. It is a shame that people have found a way to basically turn everything into a crime opportunity. I totally see how identity theft and fraud are the fasting growing crimes in the United States. Reading this article brings all the feelings of fear back and the second paragraph scares me even more to know that they only need as little information as an address and telephone number to do this. This is exactly why I shred all my mail. This crime is on the rise and I don’t want to fall victim to it again. This is why I rarely use my pin number anymore. People need to get jobs and not depend on others for their personal gain.
ReplyDeleteThis really is an interesting article. I just wished i read this before it has happend to me. It turned out someone stole my identity over in California and there really wasn't anything i could do. I wish this article also states what we should do if it is already happening to us.
ReplyDeleteI remember when my mother in law said she got a really important call and they needed her credit card number and she happily obliged.
ReplyDeleteIdentify thieves mostly prey on the elderly because they aren't in the KNOW with today's technology.
I've had something happen to me once. It was completely my fault. I thought I had entered a legit website, it asked for my account password and within ten minutes, my World of Warcraft game was taken from me and my credit card was in danger of being stolen since it had been on the WoW account.
I know, it's still a game, but I felt violated none the less.