Fast Facts About ID Theft

* Victims who discovered identity theft in the early stages-within the first month - spent fewer than 10 hours resolving the related problems. (Source: U.S. Federal Trade Commission statistics, 2004.)

* Only one in 10 victims report they were aware that their personal information had been taken before discovering they were victims of identity theft. (Source: U.S. Federal Trade Commission statistics, 2004.)

* One in six identity theft victims has had their identity used by criminals when arrested and charged with a crime. (Source: U.S. Federal Trade Commission statistics, 2004.)

* Most victims do not learn about the theft of their identity until months after it has occurred.

* Victims of identity theft have reported that clearing their names and reclaiming their identities can take an average of 44 months according to the United States Postal Inspection Service.

* According to the ID Theft Resource Center, identity theft victims average 300 hours of activity in attempts to clear their names.

And More Facts

The FTC reports that among victims:

• 85% of identity theft victims had one or more of their accounts misused
• Only 25% of the victims reported the crime to criminal authorities
• Only 22% of the victims reported the crime to one or more credit bureaus
• 50% of the victims did not know how the criminals got their personal information
• 26% of the victims said they knew the person who misused their identity

The FTC is engaged in the battle against identity theft, they report:

• There were 9.9 million identity theft victims in 2003.
• The loss to businesses and the victims was $53 billion.
• On average, the thief misused the victim's personal information to obtain money or goods or services valued at $10,200.

The FTC further reports that a victim(s) reported that they experienced:

• 36% had credit card problems
• 35% were harassed by a collector
• 35% had loans rejected
• 23% had banking problems
• 16% had insurance rejection
• 14% had a criminal investigation

Identity theft has become a crime of epidemic proportions. Over the last five years, this crime has affected over 27 million Americans. Last year alone, identity theft affected an estimated 10 million Americans resulting in losses of over $53 billion.
ID Guard's Identity Early Warning System is a proprietary early detection and warning system, which scans hundreds of data sources at various daily, weekly, bi-weekly and monthly intervals for address changes-a common link in identity theft cases. We alert you immediately to any potential identity theft in progress!
This invaluable system complements our already vast array of identity prevention and response products including $25,000 in identity theft insurance per member, identity education center, criminal identity checks, online reputation monitor, and credit monitoring.
We are certain you will be completely satisfied with our services. Please contact us if we can be of any assistance to you or your family.