Identity theft fears soar in 2007

Public fears over identity theft have doubled during 2007 – and it has overtaken yob culture to become the top safety concern for British women – according to new research from American Express Insurance Services.

The new figures from American Express Insurance Services reveal the extent to which identity theft has become a key safety issue for the British public – overtaking more traditional crime fears such as car theft and vandalism.

The poll, conducted by YouGov, asked a representative sample of 2,000 Britons what their top safety concerns were in the run up to Christmas. Findings were compared to YouGov research from the start of 2007 to give an impression of sentiment change over the course of the year.

Personal safety became a more all-embracing issue during 2007. The percentage of people with safety fears has risen from 63% to 76% between January and December 2007.

The combination of greater Internet usage and high profile security breaches has put ID theft firmly on the public’s agenda as a top safety issue. Fear over identify theft and fraud have soared from 22% to 41% during 2007. ID theft now stands second only to yob culture (44%) in topping the list of British security concerns.

For tech-savvy young Britons (25-34 years old), ID theft was the top safety fear (38%). It has also become a greater concern for women than men (43% versus 40%).

ID theft was one of a number of safety issues that have become a much greater public concern during 2007. Fears of burglary have risen to 34% from 14% at the start of the year and concern over car vandalism is up to 28%.

The regions where concern over ID theft was strongest comprised: the North East (52%), the South West (48%) and the Midlands (44%). Londoners were more concerned about the threat of yob culture (45%) and – with Christmas party season approaching – personal safety on the late train home.

Chris Rolland, Head of American Express Insurance Services commented: “Events in the last few weeks have clearly focused the public’s attention on identity theft issues. As more than just a credit card, helping people protect their identity has become a major area of focus for the American Express insurance team. In recent months, we have developed an Identity Defence product which is designed to combat one of the UK's fastest growing crimes, whilst giving our busy customers peace of mind.

“At a time when people are gearing up for a festive spending spree, whether in the high street or online, now is a good time for people to protect their identity. We appreciate that for busy Brits today there never seem to be enough hours in the day to do everything, but protecting one’s identity is something everyone should review every now and then. To help people assess the risk of their identity being stolen, we have set up an identity theft calculator on our website – a practical, simple service that allows people to assess their own risk factor.”