Identity crisis: Protect yourself from ID theft

You can make yourself less of a tantalizing target for an information thief.

By Tyler Chin, AMNews staff. Oct. 13, 2003.

Jonathan L. Pollitte, MD, an internist in Johnson City, Tenn., was terrified that his medical career would be derailed just as it was being launched.

Unknown to Dr. Pollitte, a former employer had obtained a unique physician/practitioner identification number under his name and used it to submit more than $2 million in bogus claims to Medicare.

Dr. Pollitte eventually convinced federal investigators he was innocent, but not before losing 20 pounds in 15 days because he was so anxious and stressed out about his career and family's future, said Bruce Shine, the Knoxville, Tenn., attorney who represented him.

Dr. Pollitte was among the estimated 9.9 million Americans who were victimized by some form of identity theft last year, according to a survey released Sept. 3 by the Federal Trade Commission. That survey figure was higher than two other estimates by Gartner Inc. and Harris Interactive Inc., which in July pegged the number of victims within the previous 12 months at 7 million.

Identity theft occurs when crooks misuse someone else's personal information for their own gain. That includes obtaining bank accounts, credit cards, loans, utilities, mortgages and merchandise under that person's name. The crime can ruin victims' finances, credit ratings and reputations, and exact a heavy emotional toll as victims go through an often-frustrating and time-consuming process to clear their names, experts say.

In 2002, the crime cost businesses and consumers $53 billion, the FTC survey found. Because people's personal information is so readily available, identity theft cannot be prevented entirely. But physicians can reduce the risk of being victimized by being careful about how they manage sensitive information such as Social Security numbers and birth dates, said Betsy Broder, assistant director in the FTC's division of planning and information.