"Doubling of Identity Theft Victims With Suicidal Thoughts"

 According to a new study conducted by researchers at the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC), 16% of American identity theft victims have had suicidal thoughts following their experiences, up from just 8% in 2020.  During the study, the researchers conducted interviews with a random sample of victims who had contacted the ITRC in the past and 1048 general consumers.  Identity crimes, in this case, mean identity fraud or theft.  The researchers stated that the share of general consumers who have been victims of identity crimes multiple times stood at 69%, with first-time victims less common (41%).  A quarter (26%) of victims claimed losses in excess of $100,000 from romance and social media scams and other threats.  The researchers noted that, in some cases, consumers are defrauded through no fault of their own.  A third (33%) of ITRC victims and nearly a quarter (23%) of general consumers have received between two and five data breach notices from companies they've done business with that have failed to safeguard their personal information.  However, the researchers noted that poor personal security sometimes provides an open door for hackers and fraudsters.  Only half (53%) of general consumers use multi-factor authentication (MFA), and a similar share (52%) have their mobile lock screen enabled.  Some 59% say they share the same password across multiple accounts.  The researchers also found that just 57% limit what they post online, and even fewer (48%) restrict who can see these posts.  The researchers stated that "the fact that 16% of identity crime victims thought it's easier to end their lives than try to recover from an identity crime says as much about the lack of concern and support for identity crime victims as it does the victims themselves." The researchers argued that we need to fundamentally change the way we support identity crime victims to ensure no one feels ignored or dismissed the way they do today.

Infosecurity reports: "Doubling of Identity Theft Victims With Suicidal Thoughts"