Identity Theft Laws
By Rick Hazeltine
Staff Editorial Writer
As the occurrences of identity theft increases so do the federal and state identity theft laws designed to address the ever-growing problem.
Because most people aren't involved in developing laws, they probably aren't familiar with the process, which is often complicated and very time consuming. It is no different with identity theft laws.
As with any crime, federal identity theft laws usually carry the most weight and the biggest penalty. A few states have also added identity theft laws to help protect consumers.
The latest in a line of federal identity theft laws is the Identity Theft Enforcement and Restitution Act of 2008. This law is designed to make it easier for prosecutors to reach identity thieves and help identity theft victims be compensated for their time and effort when identity thieves are convicted.
The law also enables federal prosecution of identity thieves even if they committed the crime in the same state as the victim. Previously, the federal government could only prosecute crimes committed across state lines.
Other federal identity theft laws include:
- Fair Credit Reporting Act establishes procedures for correcting mistakes on your credit record, including those involving fraud. It also requires that the credit bureaus only provide your credit report for legitimate business needs.
- Fair Credit Billing Act created procedures for resolving billing errors on your credit card accounts and limits a consumer's liability for fraudulent credit card charges.
- Electronic Fund Transfer Act protects consumers on all transactions using a debit card or electronic means to debit or credit an account. It also limits a consumer's liability for unauthorized electronic fund transfers.
- Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act was the landmark law passed by Congress in 1998 that recognized identity theft as a federal crime, which gives prosecutors more tools in fighting identity theft crime and allows the crimes to be investigated by agencies such as the U.S. Secret Service, the FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
- Identity Theft Penalty Enhancement Act was passed in 2004 and increased penalties for aggravated identity theft. These included the addition of two years to prison sentences for criminals convicted of using stolen credit card numbers and other personal data to commit crimes.
State identity theft laws vary but many have specific laws regarding the use of Social Security numbers. To see what your state's laws are regarding the use of SSNs, visit the Federal Trade Commission's Web site: http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/idtheft/law-enforcement/state-laws-social-security.html
