South Carolina Sees Spike In Identity Theft

Identity theft has spiked by 15 percent in South Carolina.
The South Carolina Treasurer's Office says the increase puts us the state as 20th in the nation in the number of complaints about the crime.
The study by Javelin Strategy and Research points to social media as one of the causes, saying what people post on public profiles could give away too much of their personal information.
The reports looks at the increase between 2010 to 2011.
The study says even things like a birthday or a pet's name could be used against someone to verify their identity.
Someone got a hold of Shelvy Harling’s personal information.
"She was printing out unemployment checks on her computer," Harling explained. "It's just something that you just don't ever know when it's going to happen to you.”
She says clearing up the confusion was a headache.
"For a long time I was paranoid about that, and really upset, because I never had anything like that happen to me," Harling said.
The Javelin study also says smart phone users could be at a greater risk for fraud, especially if they don't use a password on their home screen.
The Federal Trade Commission has tips to help people from becoming a victim. They say to deter identity thieves by safeguarding your personal information.
Detect suspicious activity by monitoring your financial accounts and billing statements.
Finally, they say to defend yourself against identity theft by filing a police report as soon as you suspect a problem.


South Carolina Sees Spike In Identity Theft | WSPA