Identity Theft & Data Scams

Fraudsters combine real and fabricated personal data to create a new 'synthetic' identity, then build credit before vanishing with borrowed funds. Victims often do not realise until a debt collector calls years later.

Criminals use stolen personal data to open bank accounts, credit cards, loans, or utility services in your name — spending freely before the debt lands on your credit file. You may have no idea until a lender or debt collector contacts you.

Fraudsters create a brand-new online account on a platform you use — exploiting weak identity verification — and then claim ownership of your profile, rewards, or payment methods. Unlike standard account takeover, no password reset is needed because the account never existed before the fraud.

A child's Social Security Number or national identifier is used to open credit accounts, take out loans, or commit tax fraud — sometimes going undetected for years until the child applies for a student loan or their first credit card as an adult.

Older adults are disproportionately targeted for identity theft due to stronger credit histories, consistent income streams, and the assumption that they check financial accounts less frequently. Fraudsters open credit lines, redirect benefits, and drain retirement accounts.

Criminals use your health insurance details, Medicare number, or NHS number to fraudulently receive medical care, prescription drugs, or insurance payouts — leaving you with corrupted medical records that can endanger your health.

A fraudster files a tax return using your Social Security Number or national identifier before you do, claiming your refund. You only discover the fraud when your legitimate return is rejected as a duplicate — and reclaiming the refund can take months.

A fraudster submits a change-of-address request in your name to your postal service, redirecting your mail — including bank statements, replacement cards, and government correspondence — to an address they control.

Scammers pose as data-removal services or privacy companies, claiming they have found your personal data on broker sites and offering to remove it — for a fee. In reality, your data may not be removed, and the scammer collects payment and further personal information.

Criminals take username and password pairs leaked in data breaches and automatically try them across hundreds of websites, exploiting the widespread habit of password reuse to gain access to bank accounts, e-commerce wallets, and loyalty programmes.

Fraudsters intercept or redirect physical mail containing sensitive identity documents — bank cards, NIN letters, passports, or HMRC correspondence — to gather everything needed to impersonate you and open accounts in your name.

Fraudsters use the identity of a recently deceased person to open credit accounts, file tax returns, or claim benefits before the death is formally recorded in financial and government databases — a practice known as 'ghosting'.

A fraudster uses your name and national identifier to obtain employment, earning income under your identity — leaving you with unexpected tax liabilities, social security discrepancies, and potential criminal record entries you did not generate.

A stolen or cloned driver's license lets a criminal pass as you at check-cashing counters, car rental desks, and traffic stops, leaving you with someone else's tickets, warrants, and a corrupted driving record.

Criminals copy or photograph a passport's biodata page and combine it with a forged or substituted photo to create a usable fake, enabling travel, account opening, or border crossings under the victim's identity.

Criminals hijack your phone number through a fraudulent SIM swap or eSIM transfer, intercepting the SMS codes and calls your accounts rely on for identity verification, then use that access to break into email, banking, and crypto accounts.

Fraudulent 'identity theft protection' services trick people worried about a breach into handing over their most sensitive data — the exact information real monitoring is supposed to protect — while charging a recurring fee for nothing.

Criminals use a stolen identity to apply to many lenders simultaneously before any single one reports the new debt, collecting multiple loan payouts before the fraud is detected and leaving the victim with a stack of unfamiliar debts.

Scammers harvest the sensitive personal and financial data submitted on rental applications, either through fake listings or stolen genuine applications, then use it to rent property or pass tenant screening under someone else's name.

Criminals file fraudulent unemployment or government benefit claims using stolen identities, collecting payments on prepaid cards while the real identity owner — often still employed — is left to untangle tax forms and agency records showing benefits they never received.

AI-generated voice clones and face-swapped video are used to defeat voice and facial recognition authentication, impersonate victims to banks and contacts, and authorize fraudulent transactions that sound and look convincingly like the real person.

Fraudulent background check websites promise instant tenant, employee, or personal screening reports, but exist solely to harvest the Social Security numbers and payment details submitted by users and the people they are checking on.