Consumer officials are warning military personnel to be extra careful with their personal information.
Officials say active duty service members are 76 percent more likely than other adults to report an identity thief misused existing accounts, such as a bank account or credit card. Also, active duty service members are nearly three times as likely to report that someone used a debit card or some other electronic means to take money directly from their bank account without their permission. They also are 22 percent more likely to report that their stolen information was misused to open a new account, especially new credit card accounts.
State Division of Trade and Consumer Protection administrator Lara Sutherlin says the unique situation of service members makes them vulnerable...
"This is partially because when folks are overseas and deployed away from home, more individuals have access to their accounts,credit card and other information and it makes them more vulnerable..."
Reports indicate nearly 14 percent of active duty service members who reported identity theft said that a family member or someone they know misused their identity, compared to just 7 percent of other adults. While just ten percent of military members reported losing money, their total losses to scams were $27.4 million.
Sutherlin says their website has information for military members.
