Students learn about identity theft.
Teaching Objectives:
- Describe the crime of identity theft.
- Explain how to prevent being victimized by identity theft.
- Determine what steps to take if victimized by identity theft.
Standard 9: The student will identify and explain consumer fraud and identity
theft.
Suggested Grade Level
6th – 12th Grade
Lesson Excerpt:
Young adults are some of the most frequent targets of identity theft and other scams. Why? Perpetrators want to target people with limited experience in dealing with financial matters because they are easier to victimize. Unfortunately, no one at any age or any income level is immune from this problem.
Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in the world today and can be one of the most costly problems consumers face. Consumers receive offers almost every day that sound too good to be true. Most of those offers used to come through the mail or by telephone, but today, they also come through email and the Internet. Scam artists have no national boundaries and may, in fact, be located in other countries but “doing business” in the United States.
