DRNO - Daily Research News
News Article no. 3107
Published May 6 2004

 

 

 

A Case of Taken Identity

Americans are more aware of identity theft and are taking measures to protect themselves against it, according to a recent online survey by InsightExpress. 15% of Americans have been a victim themselves and one third have a friend or family member who has been a victim.

Almost three out of five (59%) of the 500 Americans responding are actively taking measures to protect themselves. The overwhelming majority (85%) are concerned that identity theft could happen to them.

More specifically, credit card purchases are a major worry, with 37% saying the online purchasing environment carries the greatest risk, 34% telephone purchases and 10% in-person purchases, indicating perhaps that initial fears about online use are subsiding to more rational levels. However, there are other forms of identity theft worrying many of the respondents.

Identity Theft - Potential Areas 
  % of Americans Agreeing
Stolen wallet 86
Accessing a credit card number on the Internet 65
Identifying information on Internet sources 64
Stolen mail from an unlocked mailbox 64
'Dumpster diving' in trash binsfor un-shredded documents 58
Fraudulently accessing credit reports 56
Obtaining your name and Social SecurityNumber
from personnel or customer filesin the workplace		 54
'Shoulder surfing' at ATM to capture PIN numbers 46
Base: 500 US adults surveyed April 2004 


Worries center around 'the nuisance factor' as well as the obvious financial implications. The steps taken to avoid identity theft are as follows:

Precaution
  % taking
Avoid giving my social security number out 87
Shred or destroy bank and/or credit card information 83
Shred or destroy any credit card or other
direct mail offers
81
Create passwords containing numbers and letters 61
Avoid buying or making donations via the phone 58
Only purchase goods online from a reputable Web site 56
Install a computer firewall at home 52
'Read the privacy statements and/or
bank liability clauses
50
Check my credit report more frequently 38
Only use one credit card for purchases 31
Avoid shopping online 31
Avoid using my debit/check-cashing card for purchases 20
Subscribe to an identity theft protection program 11
Base: 500 US adults surveyed April 2004



In terms of liability, less than half of consumers (48%) expect that they would be at least partly responsible for charges made on their credit card should they become a victim. A third consider that the institution who issues the card is responsible, 29% the institution that approves the credit card charge and 26% the merchants. 58% (only!) consider that the person stealing the card is responsible - presumably this was interpreted by most as 'likely to be held responsible in law'.

Lee Smith, President and COO of InsightExpress, says most consumers are learning about identity theft through television commercials and/or news reports: 'Three out of five consumers are telling us that banks are not doing enough to educate them on how to protect against identity theft... Credit card issuers and primary banks stand a better chance of capturing and retaining customers if they take a more proactive approach in educating and protecting consumers against the threat'.

Respondents for this study were randomly recruited online using InsightExpress' patent-pending e-RDD methodology, in late April. InsightExpress is online at www.insightexpress.com

 
 
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