Identity Theft In America

1020 Words5 Pages

Luckett 1
Kaylee Luckett
English 1010
Mrs. Rebecca Powell
30 Oct. 2015 Identity Theft Identity theft is a growing problem in America. There are many different types of ways people can get their identities stolen. Identity theft can be linked to Illegal Immigrants, risky internet use, possibly breaches of medical records in hospitals, and even stolen wallets or the mail with personal information. I have learned that Americans tend to believe that identity theft is not a problem, or at least the Americans who have not had to face the difficulties identity theft brings. Identity Theft is growing at a rapid rate with the help of illegal immigration. Illegal Immigrants can not work without a Social Security number, so they …show more content…

Internet identity theft is growing at a rapid rate, but “[m]edical identity theft is one of the fastest growing forms of identity fraud, with more than 5 million people affected in 2010 alone” (Osby). Medical identity theft could cause patients to get the wrong treatment because the information has been altered. If hospitals had paper records they would be three times less vulnerable to theft which could help save 25 times people from the effect of Medical identity theft. If hospitals want to keep electronic records they need to adopt better security measures and have monthly security checks. Medical identity theft can happen anywhere from VA hospitals to private clinics. Not to say that paper …show more content…

Identity theft might not grow as fast if our laws were not weak and ineffective. The definition of a breach is so narrow that a notification to American’s whose personal information is at risk would not be required. Many companies don’t weather the cost of the fraud, so they do not secure databases as well as they could. However, companies started to be forced by new disclosure laws to make these security breaches public. California finally passed a law requiring companies to disclose personal data when it is stolen or lost. Unfortunately, the bill has become watered down so much that it too has become ineffective (Schneier). In conclusion, identity theft is a serious crime that continues to grow in America. Many Americans who use the internet increase their chances of being a victim to identity theft. Internet Luckett 4 users are more at risk to fall to “phishing” folks. Medical Identity theft is also a growing problem due to digital records. Identity theft is also linked to Illegal immigrants looking for social security numbers. There are numerous ways you could be a victim of identity theft, and with weak disclosure laws there is not much you can do once you have had your identity stolen. Identity theft is nothing to look past because it can happen to