As you may be looking into buying a pair of shoes online,
someone else may be looking into stealing your personal
information.
Identity theft is a crime that is quickly growing in the United
States, especially with increasing Internet usage and the
preponderance of personal information available online.
Unfortunately, college students and graduates shopping or
accessing accounts online are the most susceptible to identity
theft.
According to the Consumer Sentinel report of the Federal Trade
Commission, 18- to 29-year-olds have filed more complaints than any
other age group.
At UCLA, a student’s BAR account is accessed with a nine
digit identification number instead of the student’s Social
Security number, helping ensure that no sensitive information is
leaked.
In fact, the URSA system does not process anything with Social
Security numbers, said Marsha Lovell, director of Student Financial
Services.
“The Social Security numbers and credit card numbers URSA
stores are entirely encrypted and secure,” Lovell added.
Only servers with specific IP addresses are allowed to access
the cyberpay site where online credit card transactions for BAR
accounts are processed.
But most students, staff and faculty do have personal
information available to the public on the UCLA Web site.
The directory releases phone numbers, street addresses and
e-mail addresses by default, but students can request to have such
information removed.
In contrast, many universities do not make directories with
personal information available to the general public.
Other directories, such as UC Berkeley’s “People
Finder,” do not release student’s addresses. Most
Berkeley students do not even have their phone numbers or e-mail
addresses posted for public viewing.
Yet letting just a name, school and address fall into the wrong
hands may lead to a lot of trouble.
Melissa Hou, a second-year Economics student, was informed by
Chase Bank about an credit card account she didn’t even know
existed.
“I received a letter from Chase Bank saying that they were
concerned about my account with them, but I don’t even use
that bank,” Hou said.
“Somebody had opened an account with only my name and
school address,” she said.
The perpetrator was able to charge $60 on a card in Hou’s
name before Chase Bank informed her, she said.
Fortunately for Hou, the bank said the credit card application
did not list a Social Security number; it included only her name,
school and address. She was also lucky because the whole process
did not cost her anything.
But not all identity theft cases turn out so well.
In the last year alone, the FTC received 214,905 complaints from
victims of identity theft, amounting to over $437 million in
consumer losses.
Of those complaints, 55 percent concerned fraudulent Internet
transactions.
According to the United States Department of Justice, many
people respond to spam mail requesting personal identification in
return for promised benefits.
In many cases, the requester of the information does not keep
any such promises after the information is received.
“Internet users need to open their eyes and realize that
the Internet isn’t a playground anymore. It’s the wild,
wild Web, where anything goes and criminals abound,” said
J.A. Hitchcock, a national expert on Internet fraud, in an
interview with the Kansas City Star.
In 2003 alone, Internet fraud totaled $200 million and cost the
average victim $195.
“My father was charged 30 or so dollars every month for a
while by two Web sites he did not subscribe services (from),”
said Leslie Tieu, a first-year business economics student.
After examining his credit card statements, he contested the
charge with the bank and informed the police, Tieu said.
A criminal can do more than charge purchases; he can get a job,
commit crimes, and take out loans, all in another
individual’s name.
UCLA alumna Sophia Lee, class of 2003, found out her Social
Security number was being used when her family tried to apply for
insurance.
“The insurance company insisted that there was somebody
using my Social Security number down in Monrovia,” Lee
said.
The only way for her to reclaim her number was to report to the
Social Security Administration, she said.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, students can easily
protect themselves from identity theft by only giving out their
personal information on a need-to-know basis.
For example, if a company offers a credit card or prize in
return for personal information, the student should ask for a
written application form to ensure the authenticity of the
requester.
In addition, students should check their mail and financial
information regularly to make sure they have all their credit card
and bank account information.
Individuals should also tear up or destroy all applications for
“pre-approved” credit cards, because criminals might
activate credit cards for use without their knowledge.