Chapter 22 - § 22.8 • IDENTITY THEFT AND ELDERS

• Jurisdiction: Colorado

§ 22.8 • IDENTITY THEFT AND ELDERS

In the past few years, identity theft has grown from a nuisance to a billion-dollar nightmare. It is easier than ever for thieves to get access to individuals' personal and financial information.

Not surprisingly, elders are attractive targets for identity thieves because they often possess more property and tangible assets. For example, an elder may have full equity interest in his or her home, collect Social Security checks, and have excellent credit.

§ 22.8.1—What Is Identity Theft?

In the course of a busy day, an individual may write a check at the grocery store, buy gas, charge tickets to a ball game, rent a car, mail his or her tax return, call home on a cell phone, order new checks, or apply for a credit card. The mailbox is filled with new opportunities to switch mortgages, obtain new credit cards, buy new magazines, etc.

These everyday transactions are the stock in trade of an identity thief. Each transaction requires an individual to share personal information: bank and credit card account numbers; annual income; Social Security numbers (SSN); or name, address, and phone number. An identity thief accesses some piece of personal information and appropriates it with the intent to commit fraud or theft. An all-too-common example is when an identity thief uses an individual's personal information to open a credit card account in that individual's name or obtains the credit card number and uses it to conduct a transaction.

People whose identities have been stolen can spend months or years — and hundreds of dollars — cleaning up the mess the thieves have made of their good name and credit record. In the meantime, elder victims can be refused loans for housing or cars or even be arrested for crimes they did not commit. Accompanying the financial damage are feelings of humiliation, anger, and frustration as the victims navigate the arduous process of reclaiming their identity.

§ 22.8.2—How Identity Thieves Get Personal Information

Common methods used by identity thieves include:

• They steal wallets and purses containing identification, credit cards, and bank cards.
• They steal mail, including bank and credit card statements, pre-approved credit offers, new checks, and tax information.
• They file a change-of-address form with the post office to divert mail to another location.
• They rummage through personal trash, or the trash of businesses, for personal data, in a practice known as "dumpster diving."
• They fraudulently obtain credit reports by posing as a landlord, employer, or someone else who may have a legitimate need for, and legal right to, the information.
• They find personal information in a private residence or assisted-living facility.
• They use personal information shared on the internet.
• They scam people, often through e-mail, by posing as legitimate companies or government agencies in a process called "phishing."
• They get information from the workplace in a practice known as "business record theft" by stealing files out of offices where someone is a customer, employee, patient, or student; bringing an employee who has access to client files; or "hacking" into electronic files.

§ 22.8.3—Identity Theft After Death

There is very little required in order to steal the identity of a deceased person. Just about all that is necessary are a name and a Social Security number.

With this information, a thief need only complete a credit card application and have the new card sent to an address devised by the thief, who will then commence accumulating purchases and, after a few months, move on to his or her next victim. The surviving spouse discovers the fraud only upon initiating a new credit transaction and being refused. Now the surviving spouse will have to unravel the scam to establish his or her case of identity theft of the deceased spouse. This can take a long time — five years in one case the authors personally know of.

Practitioners can help their clients avoid this problem by routinely filing copies of the death certificate with all three of the major credit reporting agencies. This should stop any credit applications from being issued in the deceased's name or...