Report Indicates Illegal Immigration Contributes to ID Theft

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Identity theft is commonly viewed as a national problem, and sometimes it can be difficult to gain perspective on some of the numbers that are reported. Picturing the estimated 9 to 10 million victims per year makes it seem like a crime of the masses and not one that affects individuals. But earlier this week, Identity Theft 911® released a comprehensive report on the ever growing problem of identity theft, and they broke the massive crime into more easily digestible reports on specific states. Not surprisingly, three Border States rounded out the top of the list of most affected areas. Arizona, California and Texas are three of the states hardest hit by identity theft.  Although the three states bore some similarities, each of them had several areas in which certain aspects of the crime were more widespread in their regions than the national average indicates. Keep reading below to see how your home state (or choice vacation destination) measures up and how you can protect yourself. 

Arizona: Worst State for Identity Theft for Fifth Year in a Row

According to the report, no other state even comes close to Arizona when it comes to their rate of identity theft per capita. Out of the seven worst cities for identity theft in the nation, seven of them are in Arizona. Experts believe the high rate of identity theft in Arizona is due in part to two key factors: illegal immigration and methamphetamine use. In one third of all identity theft cases in Arizona, victim’s identities are used to obtain employment fraudulently—that’s twice the national average. Another unique distinguisher for Arizona is that 19% of their victims are children, which is four times the national average. 

Here’s a breakdown of Arizona’s results for 2007:

•293,500 victims of identity theft

•1.2 million hours spent by victims trying to recover and repair their identities

•$147 million dollars accrued in out of pocket expenses related to repairing identities

California: Gold Rush State is Gold Mine for Identity Theft

If you picture the Rose Bowl Stadium packed to its fullest capacity—and then multiply that by fifteen—that’s how many victims of identity theft resided in California in 2007. Just as in Arizona, fraudulently obtained employment was higher than the national average. But it was credit card fraud (on both existing and new accounts) that distinguished California with 23% of the state’s identity thefts falling into that category. Of the 50 hardest hit metropolitan cities in the nation, sixteen of them are in California. 

Here’s a breakdown of California’s results for 2007:

•1.5 million victims of identity theft

•6 million hours (or 250,000 days) spent by victims trying to repair their identities

• $749 million dollars accrued in out of pocket expenses related to repairing identities

Texas: Big State with Even Bigger Problems

In the six years between January 1, 2002 and December 31, 2007 20% of the population of Texas (64% of households) was affected by some form of identity theft. Employment fraudulently obtained by illegal immigrants was the number one cause of identity theft in the state. And theft isn’t distributed evenly throughout the state. Identity theft in South Texas alone was twice the national average in 2007. 

Here’s a breakdown of Texas’ results for 2007:

•880,400 victims of identity theft

•3.5 million hours spent by victims trying to repair their identities

•$435.7 million accrued in out of pocket expenses related to repairing identities

What Do These Numbers Really Tell Us?

Judging by these three states, one of the things this report tells us is that illegal immigration is a huge contributing factor to identity theft. When workers immigrate to the United States illegally, they aren’t allowed to work in the United States. Some of them go and obtain employment where they are paid under the table in cash, but others who might be willing to work honestly employ dishonest means so that they can work. Without a social security number they cannot get legitimate employment in the United States, so in some cases illegal immigrants steal a social security number and use them to gain employment. Since the Social Security Offices don’t verify whether a name matches a social security number, it is difficult for employers to know whether or not they are employing someone using a stolen social security number.

However, when it comes time to pay taxes, thieves generally get caught.  Usually, the illegal immigrant will not file taxes, but you will. His or her employer will also file taxes and will report paying a specific amount of money to someone with your social security number. And several months after you file your taxes you will receive a notice from the IRS stating that you have unreported income and therefore you owe them an additional amount. Or, they will withhold your refund because of your unreported income. In many cases, if someone is using your social security number to fraudulently obtain employment, he or she is probably also using it to open credit or utilities in your name as well. So checking your credit report might tip you off to the crime. But, in the event that a thief is exclusively using your social security number to fraudulently obtain employment, you won’t find out about it until it’s too late…unless you purchase identity theft protection product. For example ID Secure monitors your social security number, in addition to credit and ATM card numbers, to help detect any fraudulent uses of your social security number so you don’t find yourself hassled or defrauded by an identity thief.

*Facts taken from a report released by Identity Theft 911 on August 12, 2008.