INTRODUCTION
In this report, it will be focusing on identity theft and the effects it has had on Australian citizens, as well as the effectiveness of national and international law with addressing the issue. Some cases of identity theft can include; scams, hacking, ransom and deep fakes which are the more frequent types of identity theft that affect an individual. Anyone can be a casualty of identity theft, it is a major threat to many individuals, the public need to be informed about this hence they will know how to handle the situation if they are ever a victim or it happens to another.
WHAT IT IS?
Identity theft is when someone uses another person’s information; such as their name, credit card number, social security number or any other personal information without the person’s consent and using their key information in order to commit fraud (or other crimes), obtain credit or loans, or to apply for something personal under someone else’s name, (such as passport, license, credit card, etc), even if the thieves or hackers have only few information about you they are still able to use the information from online sources such as the internet or social media; for photographs, date of birth, name, etc that are open and released to the public. Identity theft is usually used for personal gains, such as financial purposes, property or power over the person who is a victim.
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HOW DOES IT WORK?
Identity theft can take place through many shapes and forms, it can happen online through hackers, in person if someone has lost their identification, missing mail (if you are not receiving regular mail, or receiving mail that is not yours), and many more. Occasionally when information is stolen from someone, the hacker may demand a ransom (demand for money )if the money is not paid or they would release the information online to the public, or to put it up onto the dark web, as a threat, or if the ransom is paid the hacker would “delete” the information, but most of the time isn't and is kept as a blackmailing purpose or other reasons to hold the information from the person.
STATISTICS
“Almost a third of Australians who were affected by card fraud was targeted 2 or more times.”
Four men aged 50, 44, 33 and 37 were arrested and charged with a number of offences. The men sold medicare cards, driver’s licences and bank and credit cards, for people, they did this by using “sophisticated” machinery including printer and laminators. It is suspected that hundreds of people could’ve been affected by this happening as they could have been a victim of this crime. Police say it was hard to tell which were real identities of people and which were fake identities established from fictional people. Australian Border Force acting assistant commissioner David Nockels said: “once you have your identity stolen it is very difficult to get it back”. The 50-year-old man from Campsie was charged with possession of equipment to make false documents. The 44-year-old man from Carlton was charged with possession of equipment to make false documents and possession of a prohibited drug. The 33-year-old man from Homebush West was charged with five counts of dealing with identity information. And the other 37-year-old man from Homebush West was charged with five counts of dealing with identity information. A 51-year-old Chinese woman was detained as an illegal immigrant and soon to be deported from Australia.
In 2016 Azalea had a photo shoot with GQ Australia, her nude photographs were then stolen and leaked out online to the public, the photographs were being spread and shared around by an unknown source. “Research from Monash and RMIT Universities shows one in five Australians aged between 16 and 49 years have experienced image-based abuse, while one in 10 has perpetrated these acts.” Since the nude photographs had been leaked Azalea has come out and talked about other women whose faces and photos which had been used to make fake pornographic content (known as deep fakes). The images of these women have been edited onto another person who is performing the act to make it look like the woman whose face is being used is the person performing. Deep fakes affect many people, the main group of people targeted are celebrities and high-profile women to make it look like they are doing something they aren’t actually doing.
EFFECTIVENESS
The Australian Federal Police are working with the government to try and crack down on more of these cases to prevent them from happening too often to civilians. The ISST is also a group working with police to target groups responsible for the activity. In Australia, many people are affected by identity theft every day, the police advise people to be cautious of what they post on their social media networks as their identities such as name, date of birth, etc can be easily stolen, Facebook is one of the biggest sites where identities can we easily have stolen, your name, photograph, date of birth, city and family are all out to the public if not edited cautiously.
CONCLUSION
Identity theft can happen to anyone around the world. Everyone must be cautious of what they put out online, and who they trust with their passwords. Civilians are able to be hacked online easily with everything involving the internet and social media, which shows off a substantial amount of information. There are many ways someone can have their identity stolen so it is best that everyone is always cautious about their social media and their personal belongings, such as passport, drivers license, Medicare card and other belongings that could have them potentially having their identity stolen.
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