Identity Theft Laws

Identity Theft is a federal crime. In October of 1998 Congress enacted the Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act. This Act which is directed at identity theft makes it a federal crime when someone: "knowingly transfers or uses, without lawful authority, a means of identification of another person with the intent to commit, or to aid or abet, any unlawful activity that constitutes a violation of federal law, or that constitutes a felony under any applicable state or local law."

Definition of Identity
Under the Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act, "means of identification" is defined as any piece of information that can be used alone or combined with other information to identify a specific person. The include a person's name, SSN, credit card number, medical insurance number, etc..

Identity Theft Carries Heavy Penalty
A convicted identity thief can face maximum penalty of 15 years imprisonment, a hefty fine, and can lose any property or asset used or intended to be used to commit the crime. However in most identity theft convictions, the identity thief may have committed other crimes to complete the crime. These often include: mail fraud, computer fraud, credit card fraud, social security fraud, wire fraud, or financial institution fraud. All of these are federal felony offenses and can carry imprisonment penalties of up to 30 years.

Laws related to identity theft or the prevention of identity theft have been passed in most states. You can contact a local consumer protection agency or your State Attorney General's office to get more information on laws that relate to identity theft.

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