Thieves were able to capture ESNs using radio scanners. Because the numbers were easily replicable, the thieves would then code the ESNs into other chips and clone cellular phones. Consumers by the thousands were alarmed to find bogus charges on their cell phone bills. The cellular phone industry has made significant strides in reducing cell phone fraud involving ESNs, but the experience is an important warning to those who develop easily spoofed identifiers. A similar problem could occur with the PSN integrated into the Pentium III chip.
Identity theft is a growing public concern.
Today's victims of identity theft routinely find that reestablishing one's identity can be time consuming and frustrating. Associating the correct information with the correct individual is a core privacy principle. Associating inaccurate information can seriously damage an individual. Weak authenticators raise the likelihood of impersonation and the concurrent damage of inappropriately associating information or activities with the wrong individual. The fact that computers are often used by multiple individuals and when sold change hands completely, the risk of the PSN associating the inaccurate information with an individual increases.