Identity theft on the rise
Veda Advantage research shows 4.4 million Australians affected by identity theft – an increase of 600 000 people in past year.
3 June 2009: Veda Advantage today released figures showing the incidence of identity theft in Australia is increasing, with 4.4 million Australians (26%) affected by identity theft*, compared to 3.8 million (23%) for the same period last year.
Veda Advantage’s indexed Identity Theft Report, conducted by Galaxy Research, also found despite increasing attacks of identity theft, 67% of Australians have failed to take even simple measures to protect their identity. This is only a marginal improvement from the 70% of Australians who said they had not taken any steps to protect their identity in March 2008.
Kelvin Kirk, Veda Advantage Marketing and Communications Manager, said the results are concerning. “This Report indicates more than a quarter of the Australian population has been affected by identity theft, either personally, or within their friend and family networks. The cost of identity theft to Australians is reported to be $3.5 billion annually according to the NSW Crimes Commission. Many Australians could have had their identities used for money laundering, drug trafficking, illegal immigration and even terrorism. Yet, despite these rising statistics, the majority of Australians haven’t taken any action to protect themselves.”
Veda Advantage today announced the acquisition of personal security specialists Secure Sentinel, part of Vero Insurance Limited, a Suncorp Group company. The Secure Sentinel acquisition will allow Veda Advantage to offer cost-effective and much needed services to help Australians protect their identity. It will also complement and expand Veda’s existing credit-file alert services and will encourage people to adopt a proactive stance against identity crime.
Protecting your identity can be as simple as placing an alert system on your credit file, or calling a hotline which will cancel your credit cards for you. Both these steps should now be a routine measure for all credit-active adult Australians,” Mr Kirk said.
Other Galaxy Research findings include:
Of the 5% of Australians who had been personally affected by identity theft, 51% of these victims had not done anything to protect themselves from identity theft.
Just over 80% of the digital generation (16-24 year olds) have not taken any measures to
protect their identity.
82% of Australians were not aware of services available in Australia to alert and help
protect them from identity theft.
75% of Australians who had been victims of identity theft had a household income of more than $40 000.
65% of Australians who were personally affected by identity theft were between the ages of 25 and 49.
How can Australian’s protect themselves from identity crimes?
Veda Advantage’s unique My Veda Alert service notifies a consumer every time a credit provider accesses their credit file. Consumers receive an electronic report advising them of who has obtained a copy of their credit report, any changes to address information, or if new applications for credit have been made under their name. This allows consumers to monitor any irregular activity, which may indicate an identity has been stolen and is being used to fraudulently obtain credit. It will also help consumers take a proactive stance against identity crimes to prevent financial loss and adverse changes to their credit profile.
Secure Sentinel, a Veda Advantage company, also helps protect, retrieve and replace registered cards if they are lost or stolen. Secure Sentinel provides loss assistance, financial card cancellation and retrieval services in one package, with a dedicated 24-hour hotline consumers can call from anywhere in the world to cancel financial cards. Its focus is on preventing identity theft rather than a recovery process.
Mr Kirk said Australians should pay close attention to their online behaviour to avoid any potential exposure to identity theft. “Global incidences of identity theft and online fraud more than doubled last year** which demonstrates the importance of protecting your identity both on and offline. In recessionary times, criminals look for more inventive ways of obtaining information to assume someone’s identity, and the borderless characteristics of the internet are fast becoming a hot spot for a wave of new attacks.
“In April 2009 a Unisys study revealed 63% of Australians said they believed their personal risk to identity theft and related crime would increase as a result of the global economic crisis***. When you consider the shift in business and economic transactions moving to new digital and online formats, protection of personal and financial details has never been more important,” he said.
Veda Advantage has put together the PROTECT strategy to help Australians protect themselves against identity crimes:
Post – remember to notify institutions when you move house, shred important documents from your mail and put in place a secure mail box. If you are going away, have mail held at the post office.
Review – check your bank accounts each month or check them online and look into any abnormal account activities.
Online - hide passwords and information such as birth dates and phone numbers when using an open online environment and elect the ‘private’ option on social networking sites.
Track – changes to your credit file. A low-cost solution is to set up an e-Alert service which notifies you to any changes on your credit file that may imply someone if applying for credit in your name.
Eliminate – shred any paperwork with personal information or account details, including bank and credit card statements, phone, and gas/electricity.
Computer – use secure transactions. If using a shared computer, regularly update security software, and don’t open any attachments from an unreliable source.
Tell – inform your credit providers immediately if you find any suspicious activity in your financial accounts.
Veda Advantage recommends checking your credit file 30 days prior to applying for a loan to make sure all accounts are in order www.mycreditfile.com.au.
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For more information please contact:
Sally Robertson: 0400 927 003 or 02 9270 0289
Kevin Burke: 02 92700234.
* About the Galaxy Research Study: The Galaxy Research study was commissioned by Veda Advantage. It was a national telephone survey with a sample of 1100 respondents aged 16 years or older distributed throughout Australia, and weighted to the national population to ensure that age, gender and regional quotas were supplied to the sample to reflect the latest ABS population estimates. The study was conducted on the Galaxy Omnibus on the weekend 17 April to 19 April, 2009. Galaxy Research respondents had either been personally affected by identity theft, had someone in the family, friends or acquaintances experience identity theft.
** The Symantec Internet Security Threat Report consists primarily of four reports: the Global Internet Security Threat Report; the EMEA Internet Security Threat Report, for the Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) region; the APJ Internet Security Threat Report, for the Asia-Pacific/Japan (APJ) region; and the Government Internet Security Threat Report, which focuses on threats of specific interest to governments and critical infrastructure sectors. Together, these reports provide a detailed overview and analysis of Internet threat activity, malicious code, and known vulnerabilities. Trends in phishing and spam are also assessed, as are observed activities on underground economy servers.
***Unisys is a worldwide information technology company. The Unisys Security Index for April 2009 presents a social indicator regarding how safe consumers feel on key areas of security. Conducted twice a year the Unisys Security Index provides a regular, statistically robust measure of concerns about four areas of security: national security - security and epidemics, financial security -bankcard fraud and ability to meet personal financial obligations, internet security - spam, virus and online financial transactions, personal security - physical risk and identity theft.
To the extent permitted by law, Veda Advantage specifically excludes all liability or responsibility for any loss or damage arising out of reliance on information in this release and the data referred to, including any consequential or indirect loss, loss of profit, loss of revenue or loss of business opportunity.
About Secure Sentinel
Secure Sentinel is part of Vero Insurance Limited (Vero), which is part of the Suncorp Group. Secure Sentinel has been operating for over 25 years and provides services to members in Australia and New Zealand.
Services subject to any restrictions imposed by the financial card or mobile phone providers. Other terms and conditions apply. Secure Sentinel Pty Limited ABN 53 054 235 157 is not an insurance provider. For full terms and conditions go to www.securesentinel.com.au.
DISCLAIMER
The information in this release is not intended to provide guidance or commentary as to Veda Advantage’s financial position nor does it constitute legal, accounting or other professional financial advice. The information may change and Veda Advantage does not guarantee their currency or accuracy. Veda retains all ownership, copyright and other intellectual property rights in this release and the data in this release and report and they may not be reproduced or distributed in any way except with prior written approval from Veda Advantage.