Less-Biased Source Contradicts Earlier Study On Identity Theft Drop
from the different-directions dept
Last week, a research firm released a study saying that identity theft was becoming less of a problem. We were skeptical of its claims because it was sponsored by a bank and a credit-card company, and that was followed by much of the study being debunked, because it ignored more complex types of identity fraud. Now, the Federal Trade Commission has released its own stats on identity theft, and they paint a different picture. While the number of identity theft complaints made to the FTC has plateaued, losses reported to it have more than doubled since 2004 -- contrasting the previous study's claim that losses had fallen. It should be pointed out that the FTC figures aren't comprehensive, either, since they only cover complaints made to the FTC, and it's likely that a small proportion of identity theft victims ever bother to make such a complaint. Still, with the regular occurrence of data leaks and these conflicting reports, it seems a little silly to blindly accept a study sponsored by parties with a vested interest and pooh-pooh the problem, instead of pushing for solutions to stop the problem and mitigate its impact.
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
Reader Comments
Subscribe: RSS
View by: Time | Thread
More info
Thought it may be of interest.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Consumers want identity theft protection
The studies, while flawed, point to the fact that consumers are more aware of identity theft -- that's why many want these features AND why the crime rate has plateaued (or dropped).
[ link to this | view in chronology ]