Financial Information Theft Often Done By Those We Know Best

If

you're credit card has ever been stolen or your credit card

number used without your permission, there's a pretty good chance

the perpetrator was someone you knew. At least that's the finding

in a new Experian-Gallup poll, which finds that 21% of victims

of personal or financial information theft reported the theft

was done by someone they knew personally.

Sixteen

percent of those surveyed reported having had their financial

information stolen, such as bank or credit card numbers. Twelve

percent report having had their personal information stolen,

such as their Social Security number, driver's license or birth

certificate.

Most

consumers aren't too worried, though. Over 40% of those surveyed

don't believe they are likely to become a victim, and about

a third believe they can't prevent thieves from stealing their

personal or financial information regardless of what they do.

For

those with bad credit, it simply doesn't matter. Ten percent

of consumers say that their credit is so poor, it doesn't matter

if they try to protect their credit or not.

Published 09/07/05 (Modified 05/07/12)