When your identity gets stolen 😅
Ignorance is a flimsy shield.
There is the video on the internet with the caption "when your identity gets stolen 😅". It's 25 seconds long but for those with accessibility needs or just don't want to go on YouTube shorts here's how it goes:
To set the scene, creator Ace Anderson is in his apartment playing the role of an identity thief wearing a black hoodie and the victim in light cream hoodie. It begins with the thief who kindly spoke:
"Hey. I've stolen your identity. I've been living as you for a week."
The victim in the white hoodie says nothing but looks at him with concern.
The thief's smile begins to fade into a look of despair. His bottom lip trembles as he begins to weep.
The victim tries to console him "Hey it's okay."
Audibly crying, the thief manages to get out "like... how do you even get up in the morning?"
The victim opens his arms to comfort him with hushes "Shhh, it's gonna be okay."
End scene
This skit is comedy gold and gives us a snapshot into what some people genuinely believe: that their poor health, be it physical, mental, financial, somehow keeps them immune from identity theft.
If you happen to know anyone in your life that thinks this way, just ask them one question:
If you had to do a significant amount of crime that could land you in prison upon being caught - would you choose to do it in your real name/identity or would use someone else's?
The point being, you don't have to be hoarding a fortune to be a valuable asset to an identity thief. If a thief has your date of birth, address, identification numbers, and/or any of the other personally identity information (PII) from one of the 3,205 data breaches last year (2023 Statistica) - they have the ability to open lines of credit in your name. Unless you took the time to freeze your lines of credit, but even then...
EDIT: there are three major credit bureaus, there are also minor credit bureaus to consider your credit freeze complete. See the list here: https://inteltechniques.com/freeze.html (ty Stew & Scar!)
Even if you did, and good on you for you doing that, identity thieves can also create accounts on legit crypto exchanges to launder money into their digital wallets. This is not a hypothetical, this is a reality for 9% of the US population (Bureau of Justice Statistics). The impact for the retired generation who can lose their lifetime savings in a country that does not have a social safety net is devastating.
What can be done then? Well, funny you should ask...
Scarlett Cavendish
Don't tell Scarlett I said this, but Your OpSec is Your Problem is my favorite blog post in the institute so far. I recommend the linked guides in Scarlett's post, enough so to duplicate the links here for your convenience with bonus links:
- Digital Defense - Personal Security Checklist
- Surveillance Self-Defense
- BONUS: Awesome Privacy privacy respecting alternatives to popular applications
- BONUS: Credit Freeze Guide
For your technical Luddite friends & family it might be better to start with a conversation about what is sensitive information. Don't want to talk to your relatives this year? Well fair, one can't blame you - but broader picture criminals don't need more victims. If you're just not on good terms, consider instead, just dropping them this delightfully Canadian guide on how to reduce risk of identity theft. With any luck, they'll do a little more than 😅
