Jon Kyl: “with increasing frequency, criminals are using the Social Security numbers and other personal information of law-abiding…”

“with increasing frequency, criminals are using the Social Security numbers and other personal information of law-abiding citizens to assume their identity and take their money. Identity fraud can be more serious than a criminal picking someone's pocket and lifting cash or a credit card. Identity theft involves criminals--who may have ties with international criminal syndicates-- obtaining enough information on another person that they can open up new credit card accounts in the law-abiding person's name. Some call identity theft high-technology bank robbery. But law-enforcement officials say committing identity fraud is easier than robbing a bank. Identity fraud is one of the fastest growing financial crimes. An alarming 2,000 cases occur each week. Credit-card fraud losses--the major financial loss in personal-identity thefts--may amount to as much as $2 billion a year. The statistics don't reveal the hardship these crimes can cause. Imagine the anxiety of knowing that a criminal has been able to gain hold of your most personal identification information to open credit cards or apply for loans in your name. Even when fraudulent charges are cleared from a victim's financial records, he or she cannot be sure that the perpetrator of the crime won't strike again. Moreover, thousands can be spent to repair a tarnished credit rating.”