Everyone has heard about identity theft and what happens to the victims. Who are the victims though? How did they even get into that terrible situation?
Most of us naturally assume this could never happen to us because, let's face it, we live pretty boring lives. Why would anyone want to be us right?
It's this thinking that puts everyone at risk.
The usual goal of the average identity thief is to get cool stuff. They might be unskilled in a trade and make just enough money to skim by in life and decide they will risk jail time in the pursuit of living good for even just a little while.
Many identity thefts get solved because the thieves aren't terribly good at it or they learned how to do it by some other criminal.
Most stores in the US have some type of surveillance so once the thief maxes out a credit card, they are tracked down within a couple of months. They might enjoy their new Playstation 3 for a while but in the end, they will spend a long time in jail.
So how do you know if you are prime victim? Identity thieves look for easy targets. If they wanted to put effort into something, they'd have a real job.
Thieves look for average people that wouldn't expect it to happen to them. The elderly are prime targets for identity theft. Many elderly people don't have many friends and love to talk to just about anyone.
On the phone or even in person, someone can offer to help them with finances or pretend they won a contest or inheritance and if the person is trusting and believes the con artist, they might give out their personal information.
Not just elderly people do this. You may know someone or even be someone who is naturally trusting of other people. Educate yourself and loved ones on how these thieves operate and you will be a lot safer.