The Federal Trade Commission recently reported credit Fraud and Identity Theft as one of the most common crimes against consumers today in the United States.
In its simplest form, credit fraud involves someone using another person's credit card to make purchases or cash advances. Though often damaging, such cases are normally stopped when the consumer reports the credit card missing or reports unauthorized use of the credit card.
Other types of credit fraud involve account information but an actual physical credit card. Such cases tend to be more damaging, since the consumer is unaware that anything is wrong unless they notice unfamiliar charges on their monthly statements. Knowledge of a consumer's account number, expiration date, Social Security Number and billing address seems more valuable to a thief than the card itself.
In the most advanced form of credit fraud - identity theft - someone uses a consumer's personal information to take over credit accounts and open new ones. Identity Theft can go unnoticed for months, and the losses can be staggering. There are ways consumers can protect themselves against fraud and, if they become a victim, very specific and immediate steps to take in order to minimize losses.
