Police caution local business owners about the dangers of identity theft

~ Officers offer tips on how to avoid being victimized and how to protect consumers.

Identity theft is the United States' fastest growing crime, victimizing 9 million Americans last year with staggering losses that amounted to more than $52 billion.

On Friday, police warned Cape Girardeau business leaders that if they haven't been a victim of identity theft yet, there's a good chance they will be at some point. Some admitted later that they already had been, regaling horror stories of having thousands of dollars swiped with the help of their personal information.

"If you haven't been a victim of identity theft, consider yourself lucky," said Cape Girardeau police Sgt. Rick Schmidt, speaking to a packed room at the Show Me Center as part of the monthly First Friday Coffee meeting.

Research from a Better Business Bureau survey indicates $52.6 billion was lost to identity theft last year. More than nine million Americans were victimized by having someone gain access to their Social Security numbers, credit card data, bank statements, medical records or other personal information.

Schmidt offered up advice on how to avoid having one's identity stolen and how to protect consumers.

"There are ways to help keep yourself and your customers safe," Schmidt said.

As business leaders, Schmidt said, those in retail should ask customers for two forms of identification, preferably a picture ID. He said that thieves usually just have a stolen credit card and asking for identification would help curb the problem.

Also, Schmidt said that people should no longer use the U.S. mail to pay bills.

"You put your red flag up on your mailbox and you've just alerted me that there could be a bill in there," he said.

And with a bill comes tons of information that could be used to start credit cards in their name, he said. He said social security numbers should also never be used on driver's licenses.

"When you do things like that, you've given me all the information I need to go to a store and open a new line of credit," Schmidt said. "And if you've got good credit, I could get up to $5,000 to spend with your good name."

Schmidt recalled one recent case where one stolen driver's license ended up with someone getting credit in 19 different stores.

Buying a shredder is also a good idea, he said. Some thieves will "Dumpster dive" through people's trash to find identification numbers. Shredding such information before it is discarded would help stop that, he said.

Consumers should also check their credit report at least once a year. Credit reports are available at www.annualcreditreport.com. Also, consumers should be leery of "banks" -- or anyone else for that matter -- calling and asking for personal information over the phone.

"If they want your information, call the bank back and give it to them," Schmidt said. "Don't just give it over the phone."

One person in attendance said he had some unsolicited, pre-approved credit card checks stolen from his mail box. Later, he got a letter in the mail saying he was $38,000 behind in child support.

"Try explaining that to your wife," he said, joking.

smoyers@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 137