Abhishek Agarwal asked:
Have you ever felt pity for those who have suffered from the effects of identity theft? Should you be in their same situation suffering from identity theft, your life may be like theirs and you would understand and feel pity. It is this reason here that laws were passed to detour this continuous threat of security to everyone in the country including business and individuals.
Consumers’ awareness to this threat has finally peaked within the last five to ten years. Largely due to the media attention it has gotten, people are more aware of when they give out their personal data and especially when it is given out without their consent, such is the case on the Internet.
With the widespread attention and public outcry, federal and state legislation have been brought up regarding Identity theft issues.
ID Theft and Assumption Law
On the federal level, the Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act (18 USC 1028) was passed in 1998. When the law passed, it made any type of identity theft a felony. The law states that if a person knowingly uses the identification of another person with the sole purpose to commit some type of unlawful crime under both the state and federal laws.
Those who, in turn, violated this law, were put under close supervision by several federal agencies including:
- U.S. Secret Service
- the Social Security Administration
- the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI)
- the U.S Postal Service
Criminals were then prosecuted by:
- the U.S. Department of Justice.
The law does allow for victims to be reimbursed. This reimbursement was established within the Federal Trade Commission as an identity theft clearinghouse.
Following on the federal law’s heels, 40 states have criminalized identity theft, most of them being a felony.
Senate Bill 2328 called the Identity Theft Prevention Act of 2000 signed by Sen. Feinstein, Kyl and Grassley. They wanted more attention to direct on prevention matters before theft occurs. They wanted also to find out where the prevention should be taken and where the preventions should belong.
President George W. Bush signed the Identity Theft Penalty Enhancement Act or ITPEA as an addition to many of these laws.
What are the provisions of this identity theft law?
When a theft is found to have occurred, it is made a felony with a mandatory two-year sentence in prison. Should any of the theft be related to terrorist activity, there will be an additional five years tacked on.
It also orders the U.S. Sentencing Commission to strengthen its penalties should the theft be found in the role regarding employment.
Many people are happy that identity theft is now being prosecuted but still say the credit bureaus and the industry itself has to make necessary changes before all is said and done.
Laws were also needing to address the frustration that victims felt and a way to for them to let others know they have criminal record that is not theirs.
Some bills that were passed include a provision, which made it possible for people to get contents regarding their own information that has been put together by information broker, employment background checks and an individual reference service.
For those who had criminal records that is not of their own doing, there must be a way for those people to clear it up an expedited process. These would involve the law enforcement where the arrest was first made and the court issues the warrant. Currently, there is no such remedy for victims of identity theft with criminal records
Jack
Have you ever felt pity for those who have suffered from the effects of identity theft? Should you be in their same situation suffering from identity theft, your life may be like theirs and you would understand and feel pity. It is this reason here that laws were passed to detour this continuous threat of security to everyone in the country including business and individuals.
Consumers’ awareness to this threat has finally peaked within the last five to ten years. Largely due to the media attention it has gotten, people are more aware of when they give out their personal data and especially when it is given out without their consent, such is the case on the Internet.
With the widespread attention and public outcry, federal and state legislation have been brought up regarding Identity theft issues.
ID Theft and Assumption Law
On the federal level, the Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act (18 USC 1028) was passed in 1998. When the law passed, it made any type of identity theft a felony. The law states that if a person knowingly uses the identification of another person with the sole purpose to commit some type of unlawful crime under both the state and federal laws.
Those who, in turn, violated this law, were put under close supervision by several federal agencies including:
- U.S. Secret Service
- the Social Security Administration
- the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI)
- the U.S Postal Service
Criminals were then prosecuted by:
- the U.S. Department of Justice.
The law does allow for victims to be reimbursed. This reimbursement was established within the Federal Trade Commission as an identity theft clearinghouse.
Following on the federal law’s heels, 40 states have criminalized identity theft, most of them being a felony.
Senate Bill 2328 called the Identity Theft Prevention Act of 2000 signed by Sen. Feinstein, Kyl and Grassley. They wanted more attention to direct on prevention matters before theft occurs. They wanted also to find out where the prevention should be taken and where the preventions should belong.
President George W. Bush signed the Identity Theft Penalty Enhancement Act or ITPEA as an addition to many of these laws.
What are the provisions of this identity theft law?
When a theft is found to have occurred, it is made a felony with a mandatory two-year sentence in prison. Should any of the theft be related to terrorist activity, there will be an additional five years tacked on.
It also orders the U.S. Sentencing Commission to strengthen its penalties should the theft be found in the role regarding employment.
Many people are happy that identity theft is now being prosecuted but still say the credit bureaus and the industry itself has to make necessary changes before all is said and done.
Laws were also needing to address the frustration that victims felt and a way to for them to let others know they have criminal record that is not theirs.
Some bills that were passed include a provision, which made it possible for people to get contents regarding their own information that has been put together by information broker, employment background checks and an individual reference service.
For those who had criminal records that is not of their own doing, there must be a way for those people to clear it up an expedited process. These would involve the law enforcement where the arrest was first made and the court issues the warrant. Currently, there is no such remedy for victims of identity theft with criminal records
Jack