Identity Theft May Come From Within The Very Company That Is Entrusted To Safeguard It.
Most of us think of identity thieves as people who rummage through garbage cans or intercept mail while looking to find personal information that they can use to take advantage of a persons' good credit rating or to use someone's identity in a malicious manner.
Although there are thieves who do take those routes, much of the worlds identity theft comes from sources that we usually don't think about.
Identity theft is a major problem that often occur within the boundaries of company walls, the same companies that handle and control personal information for millions of consumers. They are the exact same companies that are entrusted to keep your personal information safe and secure.
A recent study by Dr. Doug Jacobson, director of the Iowa State University's Information Assurance Program concluded that the highest amounts of risk for identity theft can be linked to either careless employees who don't properly secure all of the consumer information that they are entrusted with.
The study concluded that a far larger percentage of lost data is due to employee error and/or negligence than hackers who pilfer information from outside the company walls. Much of this lost or misplaced information was handled by trusted employees who actually work within the company, thereby skirting strong security apparatuses that are designed to keep the bad guys out.
Most companies that handle sensitive information do make it a priority to prevent it from getting into the public domain, but all it takes is one careless employee and no matter the amount of security, the information can become compromised.
The problem with the above scenario is that once your identity is stolen, regardless to the circumstances, it becomes very difficult to get it back because you, the consumer, inherits the task of clearing your credit and re-righting the wrong.
It is almost impossible to determine where a breach in your identity status came from, and unless the company is caught red handed, it may be very reluctant to own up the theft.