Ask anyone who has ever had their identity stolen and they will tell you that it usually takes years to recover from such a breach. This extremely personal crime goes far beyond using someone else’s name to make a major purchase at a department store. In addition to credit card charges, bank account withdrawals, social security manipulation, and other ways in which your life would be affected, unrelated crimes can also be committed, on your behalf, for which you can be held liable.
It’s pretty safe to assume that when you hear the phrase “identity theft,” you’ll immediately know what’s being talked about. However, not many people are aware that criminal identity theft takes this type of crime one step further than simply racking up charges on someone else’s credit cards.
In fact, criminal identity theft is the term used when an individual impersonates another person when confronted by a law enforcement officer. In other words, if someone, who has taken your identity, is arrested or otherwise approached by a law enforcement officer and offers some form of identification that identifies you by name, then the line has been crossed into theft. identity to identity theft. criminal identity theft.
By getting vital documents such as driver’s license, social security card, and other legal documents in your name, they can effectively “become” you. In some cases, these people build a life for themselves in some other part of the world, and unless a red flag is raised on their end, they may never know until something drastic happens, like an arrest warrant is issued. in her name.
Getting a job, buying a house, getting a loan, and every other area you can think of will be affected if such an event occurs. In most cases, it takes a specific set of circumstances for it to be known that an identity theft crime has been committed. Some examples of this would be the discovery that there is a criminal record in your name that makes you ineligible for a particular job, a denial of a loan or mortgage application as a result of unpaid debts you did not incur, or an arrest as a result of a outstanding warrant in your name when you are simply stopped for a routine traffic violation or seat belt check.
The real tragedy here is that the burden of proof is on the victim when it comes time to clear up these issues, which can take years in the legal system and cost thousands of dollars while the court clock keeps counting down the minutes until you can prove that you are, in fact, who you say you are and that you did not commit the crimes with which you are accused. This particular type of criminal activity occurs more often than you might imagine and has devastated the lives of countless innocent people.
If you should be the target of criminal identity theft, here are just a few of the things you can do to begin the process of clearing your name within the legal system:
- Report the misidentification to your local law enforcement agency
- File an official phishing report
- Gain knowledge of the particular laws within your state regarding criminal identity theft and your rights as a victim
- Insist that the law enforcement agency taking the phishing report file a copy with authorities in the state or county where the perpetrator resides.
- Contact the Department of Motor Vehicles, in case your license has been violated
- Check to see if your state has victims’ rights groups or other advocates who can help you win your case.
- Hire an Attorney Experienced in Criminal Identity Theft
Don’t let anyone ruin your good name – take steps to protect your documents and other means of identification. Otherwise, there may be an impostor out there who will be laughing all the way to the jail cell: yours.
