Identity Theft Crimes

The cost of identity theft crimes is ranging in the billions, since everyday someone is robbed of their identity. The FBI, Police Departments around the world, Government and other teams are joining to fight the ongoing crime of identity theft, however, the stronger the fight the more these groups of authorities fall behind.

Down through the centuries criminals have always managed to stay one-step ahead of the authorities. Today, these criminals are taking advantage of technology development and moving even two-steps ahead. Identity theft is one of the leading crimes around the globe and the more authorities battle the crime, the more identity thefts move in to take away someone else's life.

When a person is robbed of their identity is a long, hard fight to restore the life, yet in some cases, the person never receives their identity back. When a person does receive their identity back, it leaves a void in their life. During the battle to recover your identity, you will feel angry, frustrated, hopeless, stressed, and so forth and you will feel like you are left alone in life. You are not alone since thousands of others are also victims of identity theft, thus the only partners you have are those battling with you. The authorities work to fight identity theft, however little movement is made to progress toward apprehension, since most criminals are far too intelligent to get ahead of. Criminals outside of the Internet are likely to be caught sooner than those that steals identities over the World Wide Net. Thus, the World Wide Net is less guarded by authorities than many believe; therefore, the criminals are less apt to be apprehended.

If you are not an identity theft victim yet, make sure you do everything you can to guard your self from becoming the next victim. As a victim myself, I have fought more than seven years with little result and the perpetrator in one instance was never caught.

If you become a victim of identity, theft, be prepared to battle throughout the rest of your lifetime. Be sure to contact the three B's right away and let them know that you believe that your identity was stolen. The Credit Bureaus will put up a Fraud Alert once they are notified, thus you will need to step up when this alert is activated and ask them to FREEZE your accounts. Freezing the accounts will provide you hope whereas fraud alerts will only add to the distress you are already feeling from the crime. Fraud alerts only alert the creditors that someone has possibly tampered with your account, while a Freeze on your account will enforce the creditors to look more into your situation if you apply for credit in the future.

Once you have alerted the credit bureaus that you are possibly a victim of identity theft, make sure you close any accounts that the theft may possibly have access to...bank accounts, credit card accounts, department cards; et cetera should all be closed immediately. If you notice any bills on your credit cards, checking accounts of other accounts notify the provider and dispute the charges immediately. Delaying to take action will only worsen the situation.

It is important to keep guard over your checking accounts, saving accounts, credit cards and other accounts at all times to make sure no activity is in movement that you have not issued. Keep all PIN numbers, ID numbers, Social Security Card and other information in a secure area and do not allow anyone access to those numbers unless you have no doubt in your mind you can trust the source.

After my identity was stolen, I lost self-respect, confidence and felt that my privacy was non-existing. In fact, it affected me so dramatically that my body alone felt completely violated. Identity theft crimes are one of the worst crimes that could be committed against another individual. In fact, as a victim of rape and a victim of identity theft, I preferred to have been raped again rather than lost my identity. I compared the two, since it will give you an insight of what to prepare for if someone steals you identity.

Tony Robinson is an International Author, Webmaster and Security Guru. Check out his Identity Theft Protection Tips at http://www.officialidentitytheft.com/