SAN DIEGO -
A study conducted by ID Analytics Inc., a provider of identity risk management solutions, examined data from January through December 2006 to determine where identity fraud is increasing most rapidly.
When examined at the five-digit ZIP Code level, the U.S. identity fraud "hot spots" where criminal activity is rising the fastest include some small towns (see details, right).
The U.S. counties that emerged as hot spots in the last year, based on analysis at the three-digit ZIP Code level, include 13 counties in North Dakota and seven counties in Montana. The research also showed that in general identity fraud rates are increasing in the upper Midwest, Northern California, Utah, Nevada and Maine, according to ID Analytics. Identity fraud rates appear to be decreasing in the Southern U.S. and staying consistent in such areas as Southern California, the Mexican border of Texas and in cities such as Seattle, Washington and Portland, Oregon.
"These findings may seem surprising because none of these emerging hot spots are high population density areas, and some are even rural," said Stephen Coggeshall, ID Analytics' chief technology officer and the author of the research. "Our methodology allowed us to compare fraud rates across areas with differing populations to see where fraud is rising most quickly on a per capita basis. While identity fraud rates remain high in many large metropolitan areas like New York, Los Angeles and Detroit, we are seeing substantial emergence of these crimes in more rural areas like Montana and South Dakota. This may indicate a trend toward popularization of this crime, as well as point out that perpetrators are discovering that they can act under the radar in these remote rural areas."
By analyzing data from its ID Network, ID Analytics said it has been able to gain a quantitative understanding of the nature of identity fraud. The ID Network comprises three-billion identity elements-including names, addresses, Social Security numbers and phone numbers-which are contributed in real time, by organizations spanning multiple industries, for the sole purpose of preventing identity fraud.
The company said its findings are not based on consumer victim reports but rather on actual and attempted frauds confirmed by businesses. The methodology factors in adjustments for population by analyzing the data on a per capita basis to account for differences in population.
Fraud rates were calculated based on the total number of reported identity frauds divided by the number of applications using data drawn from the ID Network. As a result, what is being reported is the rate of increase in frauds rather than the absolute number of fraud cases. Applications in this analysis were submitted to credit grantors from January through December 2006. To determine which areas are exhibiting the most rapid increase in ID fraud, the study compared the fraud rates in the second half of 2006 to the first half, looking for areas where fraud rates were rising substantially.
ID Analytics said the addresses on the applications may belong to the victims of the identity fraud if the perpetrator were to use the complete and accurate identity information of the victim. However, based on prior research into the nature of "true-name identity theft" and "synthetic identity fraud," ID Analytics scientists believe the majority of the addresses are associated with the perpetrators of the fraud using synthetic identities comprising real and false identity elements.
For info: www.idanalytics.com.
Top 10 For ID Theft
The 10 cities and their respective ZIP Codes where identity fraud increased most rapidly during 2006 are:
1. Springfield, IL (62707)
2. Bozeman, MT (59715 and 59718)
3. Missoula, MT (59804, 59803 and 59808)
4. Whitefish, MT (59937)
5. Lolo, MT (59847)
6. Bismarck, ND (58504)
7. Hamilton, MT (59840)
8. Bigfork, MT (59911)
9. Grand Forks, ND (58201)
10. Fargo, ND (58104)
The counties that most strongly emerged as identity fraud hot spots in the last year are:
Divide, McKenzie and Williams counties, ND (588XX ZIP)
Adams, Billings, Bowman, Dunn, Golden Valley, Hettinger, McKenzie, Morton, Slope and Stark counties, ND (586XX ZIP)
Granite, Lake, Missoula, Mineral, Powell, Ravalli and Sanders counties, MT (598XX ZIP).
