Identity fraud is a growing problem in the UK with perpetrators using methods ranging from trawling refuse for copies of bank and utility statements, through to electronic theft of details via the internet. The consequences for a victim can be immense with huge debts run up as the fraudster opens bank accounts and credit accounts to obtain money in the victim's name.
So what can people do about identity fraud? Firstly action can be taken by contacting the large credit referencing agencies such as Equifax or Experian and setting up a password on your personal data. This works by the agency first conducting a thorough review to verify your identity, then for a small fee they add a password to their databases containing your personal data.
Once a bank or other financial services organisation enquires to verify an account at your current address (for example that a fraudster is trying to set up), they will find a password that the fraudster will be asked to verify - which of course they will not be able to. The upshot is that no one can set up a bank account or other financial account without knowing your password recorded on the databases - no matter how many copies of bank statements they have gathered from your refuse!
So great, as an individual you can protect your data and prevent someone defrauding you. But what if you are a landlord who is about to let a property to an individual? How do you know they are who they purport to be? Well, in a perfect world everyone will have secured their personal data and it won't be a problem, but of course this is far from reality. So what is the solution for landlords? Really it is quite simple. There are credit checking agencies that specialise in identity verification, they have access to a wide range of databases that can check a prospective tenant's history, verifying previous rental property address, assessing financial accounts linked to those addresses, and a range of other data that collectively verifies an individual's identity. In short, it is always possible to protect and verify someone's identity, never take risks that you will later regret!
