Can national identity card help prevent identity theft

Will a National ID Card Prevent Identity Theft?
By Robert Siciliano

In a word, no. By itself, a national ID card will not prevent all forms of identity theft. However, if a number of other factors come into play that will effectively associate the credited with credit...
In a word, no. By itself, a national ID card will not prevent all forms of identity theft. However, if a number of other factors come into play that will effectively associate the credited with credit, meaning there is a factual amount of accountability through identity proofing, then yes, new account fraud as it relates to identity theft can be averted.

The same can be said to prevent medical identity theft and criminal identity theft, but again there needs to be effective identity proofing. Identity proofing means proving identity, that someone is who they say they are.  There are few ways to do this and much of identity proofing begins with knowledge based authenticating questions coupled with documentation that may work towards verifying who is who. Once a person is proofed, a biometric feature such as a finger print or iris scan may be captured. Effectively authenticating.

For example; when in the process of proofing numerous questions may be answered that only the actual person would know, like the name of a first grade teacher or the make and model of a first vehicle. This is not fool proof, and with the internet and information being so readily available, knowledge based authentication may be extinct in less than 5 years. Next would be a copy of a utility bill or mortgage statement. While these can certainly be extracted from the trash, the combination of a knowledge based question along with proving documents begin to proof who is who. Once this process is complete, then a biometric is captured.

There is also identity scoring which is a very effective identity proofing method.

An identity score is a system for tagging and verifying the legitimacy of an individual's public identity. Identity scores are increasingly being adopted as a means to prevent fraud in business and as a tool to verify and correct public records.

Identity scores incorporate a broad set of consumer data that gauges a person's legitimacy. Identity score components can include (but are not limited to) personal Identifiers , public records, Internet data, government records, corporatedata, predicted behavior patterns based on empiric data, self-assessed behavior patterns, and credit records.

USA Today reports Four years have passed since Congress enacted a national ID law, the Real ID Act, which will make it tougher to obtain a driver's license fraudulently. Real ID has languished due to states fighting the Act for various reasons including its too expensive.  Proponents of Real ID say it will not only to deter terrorism but also to reduce identity theft, curb illegal immigration and reduce underage drinking, all by making the nation's identification-of-choice more secure.

Former Dept of , Homeland Security Secretary Chertoff stated; "I'm going to submit to you that in the 21st Century, the most important asset that we have to protect as individuals and as part of our nation is the control of our identity, who we are, how we identify ourselves, whether other people are permitted to masquerade and pretend to be us, and thereby damage our livelihood, damage our assets, damage our reputation, damage our standing in our community."

Now, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, who previously was governor of Arizona, is proposing to junk Real ID.

Real ID has many provisions that are forms of identity proofing along with the potential for biometrics across the board. When the state of Indiana checked its 6 million drivers against a Social Security database, it ended up invalidating 19,000 licenses that didn't match. When it began using "facial recognition" technology to make its photos secure, the state caught a man who had 149 licenses with the same photo but different names.

Is Napolitano moving backwards or forwards? Do your research and decide for yourself.

Protect yourself from identity theft;

1. Get a credit freeze. Go online now and search "credit freeze" or "security freeze" and go to consumersunion.org and follow the steps for the state you live in. This is an absolutely necessary tool to secure your credit. In most cases it prevents new accounts from being opened in your name.

2. Invest in Identity Protection. While not all forms of identity theft can be prevented, you can effectively manage your personal identifying information by knowing what's buzzing out there in regards to YOU.

Includes;

Personal Identity Profile - Find out if you're at risk for identity theft with a detailed report of your identity information, including a current credit report, address history, aliases, and more.

24/7 Identity Monitoring and Alerts - Prevent identity theft with automatic monitoring that scans billions of public records daily and alerts you to suspicious activity.

Identity Recovery Assistance - Let professionals help you recover your identity if you ever become a victim of identity theft.

Robert Siciliano [http://IDTheftSecurity.com]http://IDTheftSecurity.com.

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Criminal Hackers, Government Legislation, Identity Theft, Medical Identity Theft, REAL ID Act, US Go