Americans Face Growing Threat of Identity Theft
The horrors and headaches of identity theft are all too real for too many Americans in this day and age. Take for example the experience of Michael Berry, a 33-year old Arlington resident whose personal information was stolen and used by a convicted killer to run up thousands of dollars in credit card bills. And Berry is one of what varying estimates peg as from 750,000 to 12 million victims of identity theft each year.
Identity theft is a crime that has spread with the growth of electronic records and data and the increasing availability of our personal information to government, businesses, and credit agencies. While there�s no consensus on what�s the best approach to squelching identity theft, it�s clear tighter security and government regulation are needed.
Identity Crisis, Washington Post, August 10, 2003
