Identity Theft: Like Shouting Fire In A Crowded Theatre

Once again I came across an article about the dangers and increasing threat of identity theft in Newsweek magazine. The author went to great lengths to point out how much danger everyone is in and the damage it can cause an individual. He pointed out how banks and financial institutions are so vulnerable to attack and how identity thieves are able to pinpoint specific individuals and companies. He specifically mentioned how over $24 billion in bank deposits are at risk each day in the United States alone.

It was chilling and perverted. He mentioned so many possibilities that it seems the only way we can be safe is to barricade ourselves at home, and even then that is no guarantee that some wily thief won't be able to get to you and your money and identity. And these alleged facts were all backed up by none other than experts and consultants of various cyber-security firms. Very interesting.

Of course he had to mention the numerous phishing scams that anyone who uses email is familiar with. But give me a break, common sense should protect you from phishing. The emails that these crooks use are blatantly obvious and if you just take a moment to think about it when you receive unsolicited offers, telephone calls or requests for personal information then there is no danger at all.

I am not going to say that there are not real threats out in the world and online but as someone who has worked with the public in various capacities, including the financial field, I can honestly tell you that I have never personally met anyone who has been a genuine victim of identity theft. Yes, I know of people who have disputed charges on credit statements and my own sister once had someone steal a credit card statement from her garbage but in most of these cases the problems arose from the individual being careless with that info and also being the victim of some random petty thief.

I have read stories, not many, of people who were the victims of identity theft. People who actually fell prey to someone who went to great lengths to establish i.d. and credit in their names but if you were to Google up such articles you would see that it is hardly a widespread epidemic. There are no solid numbers showing that a large portion of the population has suffered this crime yet I am continually hearing these stories in the media about the dangers. Even the title of the Newsweek article read, "Is that a Bull's-Eye on your wallet."

The bottom line is this, we live in an electronic age and we are all spoiled by the conveniences that computers and other tech items provide. With that convenience comes risk, but the reality is that most of us will never feel the sting of identity theft and those of us who do will more than likely be the victim of a random attack. There is no way to avoid randomness. Whether it is identity theft or getting hit by a car crossing the street the reality is all we can do is take obvious precautions to protect ourselves and not submit to the paranoia that some evil hacker is going to steal our identity and rob us blind.

As the title of my commentary points out, these stories floating around about the dangers of identity theft are merely ploys to attract readers or viewers and often time the stories are presented in such a way as to make them as irresponsible as shouting fire in a crowded theatre. Take my advice, just stick to common sense and you'll be fine.

(Mr. Viddy is an average Joe from Portland, Oregon and is not an authority on any given subject but he is a firm believer in doing his own research and not believing everything he reads. Mr. Viddy always encourages his readers to do the same and welcomes corrections to any statements he might make in error.)