Overview of identity theft rates and prevention strategies in New York

Identity theft is a major problem in the United States, and New York is right in the middle. Cloudwards studied the identity theft scene in the Empire State. So how are we going to hold on?

The numbers: how is identity theft doing in New York?

When looking at identity theft reports per 100,000 residents, New York comes in at 256. That seems like a pretty high number, but it represents a 15% drop in identity theft reports since the last year. This is encouraging because New Yorkers are doing what they need to do to protect themselves from identity theft.

What is New York doing to protect you?

New York does not have specific data privacy laws or passport laws against identity theft on its books. However, they have US state-specific data disposal laws to properly handle sensitive items.

New York has laws to combat “phishing” and has a law freezing minors’ credit reports. This gives some protection to the people of our state.

Taking Control: How to Protect Your Information in the Empire State

Although identity theft is a concern in New York, it’s up to us to keep our personal information under lock and key. It’s the little things that keep this from becoming a BIG problem, like tough passwords, being careful when sharing our information online, and monitoring our credit reports.

Want to look into identity theft across the country and how to stay safe? Then check out Cloudwards’ Identity Theft Study by State.