• Identity Crime: An Overview
• Prevention
• Victim Assistance
• Investigation
  • Online ID Crime Toolkit for Investigators (NEW)
  • Credit Reporting Companies
  • Initial Investigation
  • Opportunists and Organized Perpetrators
  • Sample Programs and Investigative Resources
  • A Sample of Identity Crimes
  • Identity Crime Tools and Techniques
  • Types of Financial Information to Request
  • Information Victims Can Provide
  • Victim Knowledge
  • Consumer Sentinel Network
  • Downloadable Resources
• Resource Sharing

Identity Crime Tools and Techniques

There are several common tools/techniques identity criminals use, including:

• Blank checks and credit cards.
• Laminating machines.
• Skimming devices by which the user can swipe a credit card - much like an authentic ATM machine - to obtain legitimate information from the victim's credit card magnetic strip.
• Laptop computers.
• Typewriters.
• Color copying machines.