Identity Theft Identity theft is becoming more sophisticated and the number of new victims is growing. In general, consumers are protected against liability for unauthorized accounts or transactions under federal and state law and by financial industry practices. However, innocent victims of Identity theft sometimes do suffer losses. If the crime is not detected early, people may face months or years cleaning up the damage to their reputation and credit ratings and sometimes they lose out on loans, jobs and other opportunities in the meantime. The evolution of Identity theft includes the spread of fraudulent "phishing" e-mails. These are unsolicited e-mails purportedly from a legitimate source - perhaps your bank, utility company, well-known merchants, your Internet service provider or even a trusted government agency – attempting to trick you into divulging personal information Identity Theft can affect consumers in many ways, but there are also many ways to keep your identity from being “hijacked” and to assist you if you have been a victim of it: Protect your Social Security number (SSN), credit card and debit card numbers, PINs (personal identification numbers), passwords and other personal information. Protect your incoming and outgoing mail. Keep your financial trash “clean.” Keep a close watch on your bank account statements and credit card bills. Avoid identity theft on the Internet. Exercise your new rights under FACTA to review your credit record and report fraudulent activity. Phishing Scams The term “phishing” – as in fishing for confidential information – refers to a scam that encompasses fraudulently obtaining and using an individual's personal or financial information. This is how it works: A consumer receives an e-mail which appears to originate from a financial institution, government agency or other well-known/reputable entity. The message describes an urgent reason you must “verify” or “re-submit” personal or confidential information by clicking on a link embedded in the message. The provided link appears to be the Web site of the financial institution, government agency or other well-known/reputable entity, but in “phishing” scams, the Web site belongs to the fraudster/scammer. Once inside the fraudulent Web site, the consumer may be asked to provide Social Security numbers, account numbers, passwords or other information used to identify the consumer, such as their mother’s maiden name or birth date. When the consumer provides the information, those perpetrating the fraud can begin to access consumer accounts or assume the person’s identity.