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Extent Of Identity Theft In Australia

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Extent of Identity Theft
Identity theft is a type of fraud, it is the deliberate use of someone else's identity. Most commonly to gain money or obtain credit and other benefits in the victim’s name. The victim whose identity has been stolen may suffer consequences such as being held responsible for the offender's actions. Identity theft occurs when someone uses someone else’s identifying information (such as their name, credit card number, passport, etc.) without their permission.
Identity crime is one of the most common crimes committed in Australia. Surveys suggest that approximately 4-5% of Australians experience financial loss due to Identity crime per year. Identity Crime’s annual cost in Australia is $2.2 billion. On top of that, the cost for responding and preventing identity crime is an extra $390 million. According to the ABS (Australians Bureau of Statistics), surveys found that 8.5% of Australians aged 15 and over are victims of identity fraud in 2014-2015.
In 2014-2015 just over half of the Australian population aged 15 and over have been exposed to at least one scam (56% - 10.4 million people). This was an increase from 2010-11, when the number of people exposed to at least one scam was 36% (6.4 million). 2.4% of the …show more content…

birth certificate, passport, driver’s licence, etc.) or false information to escape criminal charges they have committed. Criminal Identity theft also can occur when the people who have been arrested identifies themselves to police as another person at the point of arrest or have simply shown the police a fake ID. In the event of stolen information from another individual, the criminals most likely would have previously taken state-issued identification documents using credentials stolen from others. This could also result in charges being placed under the victim's (whose identity has been stolen) name, leaving the criminal free of

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