Everyone has heard about identity theft and what happens to the victims. Who are the victims though? How did they even get into that terrible situation?

Most of us naturally assume this could never happen to us because, let’s face it, we live pretty boring lives. Why would anyone want to be us right?

It’s this thinking that puts everyone at risk.

The usual goal of the average identity thief is to get cool stuff. They might be unskilled in a trade and make just enough money to skim by in life and decide they will risk jail time in the pursuit of living good for even just a little while.

Many identity thefts get solved because the thieves aren’t terribly good at it or they learned how to do it by some other criminal.

Most stores in the US have some type of surveillance so once the thief maxes out a credit card, they are tracked down within a couple of months. They might enjoy their new Playstation 3 for a while but in the end, they will spend a long time in jail.

So how do you know if you are prime victim? Identity thieves look for easy targets. If they wanted to put effort into something, they’d have a real job.

Thieves look for average people that wouldn’t expect it to happen to them. The elderly are prime targets for identity theft. Many elderly people don’t have many friends and love to talk to just about anyone.

On the phone or even in person, someone can offer to help them with finances or pretend they won a contest or inheritance and if the person is trusting and believes the con artist, they might give out their personal information.

Not just elderly people do this. You may know someone or even be someone who is naturally trusting of other people. Educate yourself and loved ones on how these thieves operate and you will be a lot safer.

Identity theft is when a criminal acquires and uses someones personal information and then uses that information to, in a sense, become that person for a while.

The most common uses of identity theft are credit card and check fraud. Some other uses that can occur are illegal immigration, blackmail, crime or just attacking an individual for revenge.

Identity theft can really destroy someones life for months or even years. The most common result is destruction of credit.

People often get credit cards and open bank accounts in the victims name and buy all kinds of expensive merchandise they can either keep or sell for cash.

In extreme cases, loans can be taken out for thousands of dollars and the identity thief can simply disappear. Luckily, a photo identification is necessary for high priced transactions and loans most of the time.

Credit isn’t the only thing that can be destroyed by identity theft. Many times, criminals will use your personal information to get a drivers license because they are wanted or plan to commit many crimes very soon.

If these criminals rent a car that is used in a crime, guess who is the first suspect? That’s right, its YOU. By the time you even realize this has happened, your name and picture might be all over the news.

This can annihilate your good name in your community or even the entire country. Even when it is proved you had absolutely nothing to do with the crime, people will still associate you with that particular event.

Identity theft is often in the media. Someone gets another person’s personal information, ruins their credit, steals all the money from their bank account, and really ruins that person’s life for years.

Most media topics cover the financial and law enforcement aspects but what about the fear and pain that person goes through. This can be emotionally devastating and may lead to thoughts of suicide in extreme cases.

Imagine if you have been saving a little bit each month for years to finally be able to purchase something you have always wanted. You are working very hard for this reward and you deserve it.

One day you wake up and your bank account is empty and the bills start coming in the mail. The sense of helplessness and loss would be terrible.

You may never know who did this to you. Where did they even get the information? From far away or from your own home? The ability to trust others will be hard to get back for a while and you may need serious help to recover from what has happened.

There are many different places that can help you recover financially and emotionally from identity theft. Of course the first step is always to call the police and often they will refer you to a counseling service that can be very beneficial.

Don’t just dismiss this and throw the business card in the trash. The stress that can build up may eventually become overwhelming so by talking to a counselor about the entire event and developing a plan of action for the future can really stabilize you.

Supportive friends and family are also very important to have around. It could take many months to sort out the financial areas of identity theft but much longer for the emotional scars to heal.