One of the fastest growing crimes in the United States is that of identity theft. It affects one in every four households in America and costs consumers billions of dollars each year, and this figure is growing.

Identity theft is often looked at as an individual’s problem, though it ultimately affects each and every one of us. We all suffer when identity theft occurs. Identity theft is a type of consumer fraud that occurs when someone steals or assumes another person’s identity for the purpose of financial gain, ultimately through some sort of criminal activity.