Identity theft a boom industry

NEWS Identity theft is a growth industry in the US as sophisticated desktop software and hackers' skills are put to no good, said the Federal Trade Commission. The FTC said a massive 42 per cent of its 204,000 complaints for 2001 involved stolen identities, placing the problem at the top of the list. The FTC said up to 750,000 other US citizens will have their identities stolen this year for the purposes of accessing credit card accounts, securing loans and cashing cheques. Thieves are stealing IDs though various means, such as following an electronic trail from banks' computers or paying backhanders to internet data providers.