Research Topic Selection: Identity Theft

Research Topic Selection: Identity Theft
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Research Topic Selection: Identity Theft
A wave of increased cases of data breaches has brought about concerns over another worrying issue of identity theft. Reports indicate that cases of identity theft have skyrocketed in the last couple of years particularly targeting people who are 16 years or above. According to a BJS report by Harrell (2021), 5 percent of people aged 16 years and above in the United States have been victims of identity theft at least once in the last 12 months. The amount of financial losses that the country is recording due to cases of identity theft has continued to increase day in day out and so is the number of victims. Understanding the issue of identity theft particularly in a world marked with increased technological advancement is important if proper mechanisms are to be devised for dealing with this type of crime.
Identity theft has been defined as the illegal acquirement of a person’s personal and/or financial information with the intent of using this to open a new account or use this information for fraudulent purposes. In all the two scenarios, identity theft is aimed at getting access to personal information and illegally using this to commit acts that are illegal under federal law. The most common type of identity theft is financial identity theft where the perpetrator uses wrongfully acquired personal data of another person for economic gains (Gholami & Ebrahimniya, 2021) In such a scenario, the thief can use the social security number of the victim to apply for credit cards without the knowledge of the victim. Another type of identity theft is where the perpetrator uses the victims’ personal information to file tax returns. Medical identity theft occurs when the perpetrator uses stolen information to pay for medical services, which will, in turn, be billed on the victim's account. In such cases, the perpetrator uses the victim’s personal information to obtain services or economic gains that are later billed to the accounts of the identity holder.
Whilst the issue of identity theft has been on the rise, experts argue that most cases involve people who are relatively close to the victim. According to Grant (2015), most victims of identity theft are familiar with the perpetrators. Coupled with the opportunities currently being provided by technology, most victims of identity theft have had no prior reason to hide their personal information from their perpetrators who in most cases turn out to be family members and friends. The acquisition of personal information forms t...