Half of US users expect to lose money to identity theft

Over one in five (21%) say they have been the victim of identity theft or attempted identity theft. The vast majority of identity theft victims (93%) said they took steps to minimize the impact of the crime on their finances or to protect their identity afterward.

Nearly 19% of survey-takers said they have been victims of investment fraud. The majority of victims (59%) do not report the crime to authorities. Victims frequently said they failed to report it for personal reasons, including that they blamed themselves for the crime (41%), knew the fraudster (27%), or were embarrassed (18%). Also, 25% of investment fraud victims said they did not report the crime because they did not know who to contact.

6% of respondents said they had been the victim of Ponzi and pyramid schemes. Other scams that respondents fell prey to included fraudulent IRS tax return or refund scams, investments with unrealistically high guaranteed returns, collectibles scams, and ‘get rich quick’ seminars (4% of respondents said they had been victims of each), as well as requests for money via email (3%).

Gregory Anton, CPA, CGMA, chair of the AICPA’s National CPA Financial Literacy Commission, said there are basic steps people can take before identity theft causes a financial nightmare. Securing their personal information and only providing their Social Security number when it is absolutely necessary are easy steps to take.