The likelihood of becoming a victim of identity theft varies greatly by state — last year it was most common in Louisiana, Georgia, and Florida.
In those three Southern states, more than 500 people per 100,000 people experienced fraud in 2022, according to data from the Federal Trade Commission.
Likewise, urban areas in the South were the most vulnerable to identity fraud. The most defrauded Americans were citizens of cities in Alabama, Louisiana, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and Texas.
Tuscaloosa in Alabama, the largest college town in the state, led as the county’s metro area with the most prevalence of identity fraud — more than 1,000 per 100,000, or one percent.
By comparison, some of the safest states included South Dakota, Vermont, Wyoming, Iowa, Maine, and Alaska.
Cases where identity theft is more common are shown in darker shades of blue. The worst state was Georgia and the worst metro area was Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Source: Federal Trade Commission
There were 441,822 reported identity theft cases across the country in 2022. The data also indicated that identity theft and general fraud increased nearly tenfold last year compared to twenty years prior.
Among identity fraud, credit card fraud was the most common. Thieves typically involve using another person’s personal information to steal from an existing credit card account or to open a new account in that other person’s name.
Other types of identity fraud include: employment, tax, benefits, loan, phone, and utility fraud.
Surprisingly, the most vulnerable age group to fraud was 30-39-year-olds, who made up about 25 percent of all victims in the United States.
Although this age group includes more Americans than any other, about 14 percent, it was still the most victimized by identity thieves on a per capita basis, about 0.6 percent.
Americans 80 and older had the fewest fraud cases in nearly all categories, but specifically for bank and credit card fraud, people 19 and younger were the least targeted.
Tuscaloosa in Alabama, the largest college city in the state, led as the county’s metro area with the most proliferation of identity fraud. One percent of its residents were victims of identity fraud last year. In the photo, my students gathered in the city
The American Rescue Plan Act, which Biden signed in 2021, includes $1.6 billion to help prevent fraud and identity fraud. He was pictured talking about the plan in March 2021
The second most common fraud is fraud related to online shopping, payment accounts, emails, social media, medical services, insurance, and more.
The FTC previously noted that the Covid-19 pandemic has caused a sharp rise in identity theft and fraud, with it often occurring first with the use of social media platforms.
The risk of identity theft can be mitigated by taking a handful of precautions, including shredding sensitive documents, using antivirus software on your computer, and using a different, unique, hard-to-guess password for each online account.
Measures to reduce this fraud have received federal approval and are on their way.
Last month, a A proposal to spend $600 million on measures to prevent fraud and identity theft has been proposed by the White House.
The American Rescue Plan Act, which Biden signed in 2021, includes $1.6 billion to help prevent public fraud and identity fraud. It will be available to countries by June 2023.
