| 4/24/2007 – PLATTSBURGH — For many local residents, being victimized by identity theft is a crime of distant proportions.
But in recent years, incidents of stolen identities have been hitting closer to home in upstate New York.
“Unfortunately, with the advent of new technology also comes a greater availability for people to access information,” said Ray Brook-based Bureau of Criminal Investigation Lt. Charles Potthast.
State Police in this area have established a Computer Crimes Unit to combat the rise of all computer-related crimes in recent years, he said.
“The access (to information) is greater than it has ever been.”
“The downside of the digital age is the rise in identity thefts,” said Peter Smith, an Albany-based private consultant who addressed the problem during a recent meeting of the Adirondack Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors.
“It’s a far more bigger problem than most people think. Identify theft is a crime, and it cannot ever be completely prevented.”
CHANGE IN APPROACH
According to Smith, identity theft has evolved in recent years from criminals “dumpster diving” for personal information to the current and most common form of stealing an identity: through credit cards and public records.
“Your private information is no longer private. It’s traded online like a commodity by individuals and criminals.
“The bottom line is that your personal information is for sale, legally and illegally.”
Smith told the local financial professionals that most company data breaches occur internally. Executives and corporate officials can face civil and criminal penalties for the release of customer and employee personal information, he said.
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